Together With Fruit
by Leynadoodles
Summary: Monkey D. Hazel has a dream - to write the greatest story ever told! What story could be better than her brother's journey to become the Pirate King? Along the way she'll be forced to contend with trials of many kinds; but as long as her brother Luffy is ok, it's all worth it!...right? VERY slow burn Zoro/OC, slight Ace/OC, rated mostly for violence and language for now
1. Chapter 1

**Hello! Thank you everyone for checking this out! Instead of working on the fanfic I've had planned for over a year, I started writing this instead! It's still going to be long, and I'm going to work on it pretty regularly, but it's also mostly just self-indulgent! It's for me! I just hope other people also enjoy it haha and so I don't have every tiny microscopic detail figured out - yet - and we'll be going on this crazy journey together! **

**I'm also mostly using the manga as a reference! You'll notice these first couple scenes are very different from the anime, and that's why! It's just easier to follow, overall. Anyway, enough rambling! I hope you enjoy!  
**

**If you'd like to see more One Piece shenanigans (headcanons, scenarios, as well as fanfic and OC information), follow me at "laws-yellow-submarine" on Tumblr!**

* * *

_I don't have many memories from before I was four. Nothing concrete anyway. If I close my eyes and think hard enough, I can maybe remember a woman's voice, a man's laugh...but when I open them again it's gone, and I have to wonder if I merely imagined it._

_No, my first solid memory is that of a small bundle, wrapped in blue cloth, being placed in my tiny arms. The face inside the bundle beams up at me, the grin instinctual even as a newborn. A gruff voice tells me "You're a big sister now Hazel; it's a big responsibility. Take care of him…" and awe wells up inside me at the prospect._

_My next memory is waking up to a baby's wail, the kind that grips your heart and stops you cold as you struggle to find out what's wrong. It takes me a moment to realize the sound is coming from the crib in the corner of my room, and without waiting to think about it I stand up from my tiny bed and toddle over, peering inside while perched on my toes. His limbs are flailing, mouth open as he screams, yet I hear no sound of footsteps indicating an adult on the way. I reach in as best I can to grab him, pulling him close to me as I nearly fall over from the reach. But being close seems to calm him slightly, and his screams turn to tiny whines as I bounce him gently in my arms; the way I remember being shown how, though I can no longer remember who showed me. _

_I walk into the kitchen, finding it empty, and set him down gently on the couch. His wails start up again and I cringe at the sound, but ignore it as best I can as I push a large kitchen chair over to the counter. I nearly fall again when I reach the cupboard, tiny legs standing on the counter, but I safely make it back to my brother so I can feed him. He finally quiets, and falls back to sleep._

_Everything after that is a blur; I know I stayed awake, and that eventually the mayor found us, but no parental figure ever returned to our little house. As we grew, the residents of Foosha Village did what they could to help us, just short of actually taking us in. Gramps came and went over the years as well, though never stayed long enough to take over completely._

_And so take care of my brother I did. Even as his body turned to rubber, nearly being eaten by a sea monster, and us almost being burned alive, I stayed by his side. I took care of him through thick and thin, and I'll continue to do so, so long as he let's me._

_But this isn't my story. It's his; the man who'll become the Pirate King: _

_Monkey D. Luffy._

* * *

"Wow! It's a good day to set out to sea!"

Monkey D. Hazel looked up from her notebook as her brother finally sat in his seat, having been waving since they left the shore. She grinned at his enthusiasm, eager to set sail herself. Sure, as a kid she'd never dreamed of becoming a pirate, but she couldn't just let him run off on his own. The boy had a habit of thinking himself invincible. Probably from eating a devil fruit at such a young age.

"Incoming, Luff," Hazel said, noticing the waves growing restless just ahead of them. A large sea monster burst from the ocean, the same one they'd both been rescued from about 10 years ago.

"Our local sea monster!" Luffy exclaimed, unbothered by the visitor. "Sorry to have to do this, but here's an attack I've been perfecting since the last time we met!" Luffy braced himself against the small boat, leaving Hazel to keep them steady while he reared his arm back for a punch.

"Gomu Gomu no…Pistol!" The boy shouted, his arm stretching to impossible lengths as he socked the fish in the jaw. Hazel shielded her notebook with her body as it fell beneath the waves, splashing her with water. When she raised her head to glare at Luffy, he just grinned and ignored her. "That's what you get, you darn fish!"

Settling back in her seat, she decided to pack up her notebook for now. Not much adventure had happened yet, after all, and she could just as easily write about the sea monster when Luffy was more preoccupied. Easier, even, than if she kept trying now.

"All right!" Said boy shouted as he scanned the sea. "First things first, we've gotta get a crew! I think about...10 men should do, what do you think, Hazel?" He was speaking again before she could answer. "Oh! And I'll need a pirate flag!"

"I think we should wait on the flag until we have a slightly larger vessel, _Captain_," Hazel smiled as her brother beamed at her, his pride coming off him in waves. It felt good to finally be captaining his own ship, even if it was just a small fishing boat for now.

"Yeah! One with a big sail!"

"Well, which way, Cap?" Luffy turned back to the sea, spinning slightly as he picked a random direction.

"That way! Look out world, here I come! I'm gonna be King of the Pirates!" Hazel's grin matched his own as she set about rowing the direction he was pointing. Their journey had officially begun.

* * *

The skies remained clear as they switched off rowing, not a cloud in sight. Hazel scribbled in her notebook once again, trying to note down anything of importance so she could rewrite it later. This was the story of the future Pirate King, the greatest adventure ever; she couldn't afford to miss a single detail. Luffy sat across from her, oars beside him as he played with a rather large, eight-legged bug that had hitchhiked on their boat.

"Hey Hazel, look at th-!"

"Luffy, if that thing comes anywhere near me or my pack, I _will_ tie your arms to the front of the boat and drag you along behind me," she threatened without looking up. The boy paled, casually placing the spider in the water to let it swim away to freedom without another word. It wasn't that she was afraid of bugs, per se; she just didn't want it in her hair; an unfortunate habit Luffy had developed when they were still kids living in the mountains. For his part, he wasn't trying to freak her out. He just thought they were cool.

"Luffy," Hazel blinked, pausing in her writing. "Are you turning the boat?" At his questioning noise she looked down into the water, eyes growing wide as she realized they were caught in a whirlpool. How had their luck turned so sour so fast?!

Luffy either hadn't noticed, or just didn't care, if his ever-present grin was anything to go by. "The weather's so nice, who'd have thought this voyage would end in disaster so soon?"

Well, at least he'd noticed.

He continued talking to himself, thinking out loud about the situation, while Hazel snatched the oars from his grip, fruitlessly trying to row them out of the currents. "Hard to believe that we're getting sucked into this giant whirlpool right now. Maybe I was a bit careless…"

"A bit?" Hazel muttered, giving up on rowing and tossing their things in her pack.

"There's nobody around to help either...oh well, can't be helped! Down we go..."

"You are entirely too calm about this…" Hazel pried the lid off one of their supply barrels. Well, they didn't need all those vegetables anyway, right? Out they went, into the currents behind them.

"Too bad I can't swim either...oh wait, Hazel! You'll help me out, right? Oh, what am I thinking? In a giant whirlpool it doesn't really make a difference if you can swim or not! We'll drown either way!" Hazel gripped the back of his shirt, pulling him into the barrel after her and securing the lid over them.

"Hey, it's tight in here!"

"Well sorr-y Mr. Rowing-Isn't-Adventurous-Enough! You're rubber, contort yourself!" At least he didn't have the pack digging into his back. Good thing the siblings were close.

"Ugh, Hazel I don't feel so good…"

"Luffy don't you dare!"

* * *

"What's that, Coby?! Did a barrel of rum wash up on the beach?"

"Y-yeah, and it's not empty! I wasn't sure what to do with it…" the timid boy trailed off, trying not to cower under the man's stare as he rolled the heavy barrel up to the storeroom.

"Well I know what to do with it. Let's drink it all up!" Another man inside said. The first man tried to dissuade him, knowing their captain would be anything but forgiving, but a third man spoke up.

"She'll never find out!" He said, coming over to the boy. "We're the only ones here. Just Coby and the three of us know about this. And you ain't seen nothing, right Koby?"

"Right! I-I ain't seen n-nothing, heheh…" The boy, Coby, quaked in his boots at the thinly veiled threat. "Please don't hit me…" he muttered.

Suddenly, the barrel burst apart in a shower of wood, something yelling from inside as it sprung free, shocking the men in the room.

"YAAAAAWWWWN! WHAT A GREAT NAP!" Luffy yelled, causing Hazel to groan and hold her forehead, feeling a headache coming. She'd been dozing peacefully when he'd burst the barrel open, making her fall on her butt behind him. Her muscles were stiff, a sharp pain in her back from where the pack had pressed into her; but with a big stretch and a yawn of her own, she felt marginally better.

"Looks like we survived somehow! I got so dizzy I thought I was gonna barf, hahaha!" Hazel grimaced.

"Let's be glad it didn't come to that, huh Luff?" Feeling the stares on her, Hazel finally looked up, only to see three rather large men and a much smaller boy staring at them in shock. Luffy appeared to notice them too, his brow raised as he took them in.

"Who are you guys?" The siblings asked, not sounding nearly as concerned as someone normally might.

"WHO THE HECK ARE YOU?!"

"What were you doing in there?!" The shouts caused Hazel to wince, her headache aggravated.

"Back to work, ya scurvy dogs!" Came a feminine command from outside the room, followed by a rather large spiked club flying into the building, smashing the wood to pieces. Their previous transportation gone, Hazel grabbed Luffy by the shirt, swung her pack over her shoulder, and ran like hell into the woods while the others were distracted. The sounds of shouting carried on the wind after them. Well, if they didn't before, whoever ran this place knew they were here now.

Pausing to catch her breath, she let go of Luffy, rubbing her stiff muscles to avoid a cramp. That was a lot to run so soon after being cramped up like they had been. Too bad the barrel had literally fallen apart on them, likely having been pushed to its limit with two fully grown people squashed inside. Not to mention the whirlpool…

"Um, are you ok? Are you hurt?" A timid voice asked, startling Hazel from her thoughts. "After getting knocked and yanked around so much you must be-" Luffy began to laugh, halting the young boy's sentence.

"I'm fine, just a little surprised is all. I'm Luffy! That's my sister, Hazel! Where are we?" The boy glanced over to the woman Luffy pointed at, currently stretching her back out with a loud pop, muttering something about being too old for this.

From what Coby could tell, she seemed to be about the same height as her brother, with a similar slim build; though from how fast she'd run while carrying the other boy in her grip, Coby suspected that was a bit deceptive. She had royal purple hair that fell in tight waves around her face, stopping just under her chin; and as she smiled at him politely, Coby saw kindness in her gray eyes, with maybe just a hint of caution.

"This island is the hideout of Iron Mace Alvida, the Lady Pirate. I'm Coby, her cabin boy."

"I see," Luffy said. "Well, none of that really matters to me."

"Hey," the woman, Hazel, said sternly, stretching Luffy's cheek out a bit. Was it just Coby, or did she seem to be stretching it kinda far? "Mind your manners." She scolded.

"Lemme go!" Luffy whined, puffing out his other cheek in a pout. She let him go, glancing around the area while Luffy asked about a boat.

"You're lucky to be alive!" The pink-haired boy exclaimed. "But if it's a dinghy you want, I have one...sorta…"

Hazel raised her brow, following after the two boys to a nearby shore. There, sitting in the water, lay what she supposed technically resembled a boat. With the amount of nails sticking out of it, though, she wondered if it would actually be sea-worthy. Or comfortable.

"What's this? A coffin?" Luffy asked. Hazel hung her head in exasperation. There was just no teaching that boy.

"I built it myself. It took me two years…"

"Two years?! and you don't want it?" Coby hung his head, pink bangs falling across his glasses.

"I really don't need it anymore. I built it to escape from this place, but I don't have the courage to try it. I guess it's my fate to be a cabin boy for the rest of my life. But I once had a different dream." Hazel regarded the boy for a moment, pausing in her inspection of the "dinghy".

"Why don't you just escape?" Luffy deadpanned, throwing Coby into a mild panic.

"N-no way! Just thinking about what Alvida-sama would do to me if she caught me makes my bladder weak! I just can't risk it…"

"Is this 'Alvida-sama' one who would chase after a mere cabin boy?" Hazel asked. The boy shook slightly.

"Ah I-it's just...I-I'll never forget that fateful day, I just wanted to go fishing, and I boarded a pirate ship by mistake. That was two years ago. In exchange for my life, I've been working as their cabin boy." Hazel crossed her arms. The boy seemed to be making excuses, in her opinion.

"You're kinda clumsy and dumb!"

"Luffy!" She scolded under her breath. "You're not one to talk…"

"And you're gutless too," he continued, ignoring her. "You really are worthless!"

"Y-you don't have to be that frank…" Coby whined. "But you're right. I don't have the guts to float around at sea in a barrel like you guys. Luffy-san, Hazel-san, why did you go to sea, anyway?"

"Well, ya see…" Luffy grinned, causing Hazel's lips to quirk as he said what would quickly become a catchphrase if he wasn't careful. "I'm gonna be the King of the Pirates!"

"K-king of the Pirates?!" Coby stammered, eyes widening in fear. "But...you'd have to make the whole world kneel to you! Wealth, fame, power - you'd have to achieve it all! Don't tell me you're after Gold Roger's lost treasure, 'One Piece'! Do you want to die?! Every pirate in the world is after that!"

"And so am I."

"'So are we'." Hazel corrected, plopping down next to her brother on the edge of the boat. "And I'm gonna record the whole thing!" She said with a wide grin.

"But the odds against you are astronomical! It's impossible! You want to be King of the Pirates in the Golden Age of Piracy?! It'll never happen! HEY!" Coby held his head, rubbing the large lump that'd started to form. "W-why'd you hit me?!"

"You were hysterical." Luffy said simply, Hazel nodding beside him.

It seemed to do the trick though, as Coby settled into a slight nervous chuckle. "It's ok, I'm used to it…"

"I'm not afraid to die, Coby!" The boy looked up in shock. "I've set myself to become the King of the Pirates...and if I die trying, then at least I tried!" Coby stared at Luffy in awe, admiration clear on his bespectacled face.

"Y-you're not even afraid to die?!"

"And I think I'll succeed too. Or am I just deluding myself…" Luffy trailed off.

"Well, the obvious plan is for us _not_ to die while achieving our goals; but considering we just managed to survive a whirlpool by hiding inside a barrel, I'd say the odds are in our favor so far." Luffy beamed at her, eyes alight with laughter and determination.

"_Shishishi_ you're right!"

"Maybe...I can be like that! If I'm willing to risk my life trying…" Coby muttered, startling the siblings from their conversation. "Maybe it's possible! Do you think I can join the Marines?!"

"The Marines?!" Hazel stepped closer to her brother, wary gaze resting on the boy in front of them.

"We'll end up being enemies! But I want to join the Marines and fight the bad guys! It's been my dream since I was a little kid! Do you guys think I can do it?!"

"How would I know?"

"It's a noble goal to have, at the very least," Hazel smiled at him.

"Well I'm gonna do it! What've I got to lose?! I don't wanna be a miserable cabin boy my whole life! Better to risk my life trying to achieve my dream! I'll join the Marines...and then...I'll capture Alvida!"

Suddenly, a large body came crashing through the woods, a familiar club slamming into the patchy dinghy. "Who are you going to capture, runt?!"

"My boat!" Coby screamed.

"You little sneak! Did you really think you could escape from me?!" The big woman, who Hazel assumed was this "Alvida",walked fully into the clearing, the rest of her men following behind her. "Is this the bounty hunter you hired?" She pointed at Luffy. "Well, he certainly isn't Roronoa Zoro…"

"Zoro?" Luffy questioned, but other than a shrug from Hazel, he was ignored.

"And who are you, his woman?" Alvida sneered at Hazel. The violet-haired woman grimaced. That's just gross. "I'll give you one chance to repent, Coby...who is the fairest throughout all the seas? Answer me!"

Fighting the urge to point to herself, Hazel tried to look for an opening; whether to attack or flee, she hadn't decided yet. Luckily for her (depending on who you ask), Luffy decided for her, right as Coby opened his mouth to speak.

"Hey, who's that tough-looking old biddy?" Alvida's and her crew's mouths all fell open in shock at Luffy's brazen question, but Hazel merely rolled up her sleeves in preparation.

"Luffy-san take it back!" Coby yelled, shaking the rubber-boy. "Throughout all of the seas, Alvida-sama is…" Coby paused. "Alvida-sama is…" Suddenly, he steeled himself, yelling at the top of his lungs: "ALVIDA-SAMA IS THE UGLIEST OLD HAG OF ALL!"

As said hag stared the boy down, Luffy burst into a fit of laughter, drawing a smirk from his sister. "Good for you, Coby!"

"You little-! It makes no difference to me!" Alvida reared her club back, ready to bash the boys' skulls in. "You're all going to die!" Her mace slammed into the top of Luffy's skull, drawing a wince from Hazel even if she knew he was alright.

"That didn't hurt…" Luffy grinned, causing the hag's eyes to widen. "Because I'm made of rubber!"

"Impossible!" Alvida tried to reason. "Nobody survives the Iron Mace!" Luffy's arm flew back, and Hazel stepped up to tug Coby by the shoulder.

"You may wanna step back a bit," she warned, kind smile still fixed on her face.

"Gum gum...Pistol!" **WHAM!** In one hit, the old ugly witch was knocked flat, shocking almost everyone in the vicinity.

"H-his arm stretched like rubber!"

"Captain! He beat Alvida-sama! He's not human!"

"Give Coby a dinghy!" Luffy yelled, interrupting the men's panic. "He's gonna join the Marines!" They didn't need much convincing.

"Y-yessir!"

* * *

"You must have eaten a devil fruit...incredible! But Luffy-san, if you're going after One Piece, that means you'll have to enter the 'Grand Line'."

"Yup!"

They were finally back on the sea, having acquired a much nicer boat than the one they'd started off with. Hazel sat next to Coby, near the little mast, as she wrote notes about what had transpired in her notebook. She wanted to get the details right; she could make it sound more exciting later.

"They call it the Pirates' Graveyard…"

"That's why we're assembling a super crew!" Luffy said matter-of-factly, like it was the most obvious thing in the world. "That guy imprisoned at the prison base, what's his name?"

"Roronoa Zoro!" Coby supplied easily.

"If he's a good guy, I'll let him join my crew!"

"Well, let's hope he's a good guy then," Hazel grinned, matching his intensity.

"Now you're talking crazy again!" Coby shouted, trying to dissuade the duo. "Never never never! That'll never happen! That guy's a demonic beast!"

"How do you know?"

"Never!"

Sliding her notebook into her pack, Hazel lay back in the boat, arms crossed behind her head. "Well if he is a 'demonic beast', at least he'll fit right in." She contemplated just what kind of person this "Zoro" would be, the breeze catching tiny wisps of purple hair as they sailed across the waves. The sounds of their conversation continued to float over her as she relaxed.

"His real name is Roronoa Zoro," Coby continued. "But they call him 'Zoro the Pirate Hunter'." Hazel quirked a brow.

"I suppose if he's a bounty hunter, that would make sense. 'Pirate hunting' must be a lucrative business."

"He's like a bloodthirsty hound! Roaming the seas, hunting men for the bounties on their heads! They say he's a demon in human form!" Again with the demon imagery...it wasn't exactly doing much to dissuade Hazel. As far as she was concerned, Luffy was his own form of demonic...not to mention the other two growing up. "Luffy-san, he's a pirate hunter! Pirate hunters don't mix well with pirates!"

"Well have they tried?" Hazel quipped, causing a squeak of fear from the boy.

"I haven't decided if I'll invite him to join my crew or not!" Luffy laughed. "If he's a good guy, I'll-"

"He's in prison because he's not a good guy!"

"To be fair, there's plenty who would say that we're not good guys either, just because we're pirates. Seems only fair we make our own judgements, no?" But Coby merely shook his head, and Hazel gave up, settling back down for a well deserved nap.

* * *

It was early the next morning when the trio finally spotted land; a small town with a large Marine tower situated near the back. Luffy was still snoring loudly, so Hazel assisted Coby in tying their dinghy to the docks before pulling on Luffy's ears until he woke up. She'd learned a long time ago shouting at him accomplished nothing.

"We're finally here! We made it to the naval base town!" Luffy yelled, fully awake as they left the docks. "Coby, you're amazing! You actually got us to our destination!"

"Of course I did," Coby said this as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "That's the minimum requirement for people who sail the seas."

"We probably still would've gotten here…" Hazel pouted. "It just would've taken longer."

"If you guys keep randomly floating around, you'll never be pirates! You should find a navigator for your crew!"

"Yeah! That's what I'll do! Now let's eat!" Hazel chuckled, following after her brother into the town.

"Who knows…" she started, as they walked into a restaurant a few blocks from the shore. "Maybe this 'Pirate Hunter' will know something about navigation." They took their seats, and all conversation halted as food quickly became the focus.

Coby couldn't help but stare in awe at the two siblings. Watching Luffy stuff his face to the point of stretching his stomach was odd enough, but watching his sister eat with nearly the same gusto seemed just bizarre when compared to her normally calm attitude. At least she had the wherewithal to swallow before trying to speak again.

"Well Coby, I guess this is where we go our separate ways," Luffy began, having finally settled from his food frenzy. "I hope you join the Marines and become a great sailor!"

Coby began to tear up, "Th-thank you Luffy-san! And I hope you both become great pirates! Even if that means we'll be enemies…" Hazel reached across the table to rub his shoulder, offering him a smile as she did so.

"Regardless of our stations, we'll always share this experience, Coby." He returned her smile, although his was a tad watery.

"Y-yeah…"

"Hey I just remembered!" Luffy said, drawing the others' attention. "That guy is supposed to be imprisoned here - Roronoa Zoro!"

It was as if a bomb went off, the silent-stinky-kind, with the way the other restaurant patrons suddenly stood and backed against the wall. The three just stared, confused, and as things seemed to settle back down, Coby suggested not saying that name again.

"I saw a poster that said Captain Morgan is at this base!"

Apparently that wasn't the right thing to say either, as the others in the restaurant once again promptly sent their tables to the floor in an effort to get away from their group. Raising a purple eyebrow, Hazel paid the bill, and pulled the two boys out the door. Best to leave so those tables don't suffer anymore damage.

"What a great restaurant!" Luffy laughed, back in the street. "I wanna go back there again!"

"Everyone is so jumpy! I'm getting a bad feeling about this…"

"You and me both, Coby…" Hazel couldn't stop thinking about the people's reactions. Freaking out at the supposed "Pirate Hunter"'s name wasn't too surprising, but why would they react the same way to the Marine captain? Normally, they're the "good" guys…Coby shared her sentiments, voicing her thoughts out loud.

"Who knows?! Maybe they just got carried away!" Luffy reasoned.

"Why would that happen?! I'm trying to think seriously here…"

"I'm sure we'll find out if we bug them enough. For now, let's see if we can't pay this Pirate Hunter' a visit, hm?"

Luffy readily agreed, despite Coby's misgivings, and so the trio set off toward the large tower near the back edge of the town.

The tower was a few stories high, sky blue with what appeared to be intermittent darker blue stripes along its walls. The word "Marine" was written near the roof, upon which Hazel could clearly see a Marine flag and some cannons. A similar tower, but shorter, stood to its left, and high stone walls surrounded them and the rest of the base.

"It looks so big up close!" Hazel hummed in agreement.

"Well, I suppose we'll take our leave here?" She asked her brother.

"Yeah, go on in Coby!"

"B-but I haven't really mentally prepared myself yet!" Coby protested, not quite ready for them to leave. "And those people sure were scared when they heard the captain's name…" Hazel just shrugged, watching Luffy attempt to scale the high wall. "Luffy-san! What are you doing?!"

"I wonder if I can see the demonic beast from here…" Suddenly, Luffy jumped back down, running for another section of wall.

"You won't find him just by peeking over the fence," Coby tried to reason. "He's probably deep within the bowels of the prison…"

"Oh yeah? Well there's somebody over there! Maybe it's Zoro!"

"What?!"

"Hey, Luffy! Wait for me this time! I wanna see!" Hazel took off after him.

"There he is!" Luffy said, bending slightly for Hazel to climb his outstretched up while Coby scrambled his way up. She'd barely made it to the top before Coby had already fallen back down, panicking.

"A b-black bandana and a haramaki sash! I-it's really him! That's Roronoa Zoro! He looks so menacing…"

Hazel finally looked over the wall, eyes easily finding the figure in the otherwise empty grounds. He was tied at the elbows and waist to a wooden cross-like structure, staring at the ground in a way that covered his face, his bandana covering his hair. From what she could see, he was rather beat up; but he seemed to be taking whatever punishment this was calmly.

"He sure doesn't look like a demon…" She almost pouted. "Is he asleep?"

"So that's him...I could just untie those ropes and set him free…" Luffy thought out loud. Unfortunately, he sent Coby into another panic. Hazel was beginning to see a pattern.

"That's suicide! If you let him loose, he'll kill us and wreck the town!" He shouted.

"Hey kid!" A voice yelled, distracting them as Coby scrambled back up the wall. Roronoa Zoro had looked up from the ground, likely drawn by Coby's shouting, and was sending them a rather menacing grin. "Come over here and untie me...I've been here for nine days and I can't take it anymore!"

"Hey, he's smiling!"

"H-he's talking to us!"

"Yes, that inspires confidence…" Hazel muttered, sending the man a skeptical pout.

"I'll make it worth your while," he taunted, still grinning. "I'll capture someone with a big price on their head and give all the bounty to you." Hazel's look didn't waver. "You can trust me. I'm a man of my word."

"You know, typically if you have to tell people that, it's not all that true…" Roronoa's grin remained in place, staring the woman down as if daring her to try him.

"D-don't do it, you guys! As soon as you untie him, he'll kill us and get away! I just know it!"

"He won't kill us." Luffy said calmly. "He couldn't. I won't let him." The man's face finally fell, as if surprised, while Hazel sent him a cocky grin of her own.

A sudden thwack against the wall drew everyone's attention, and suddenly a little girl appeared, shushing them. Against Coby's warnings, the girl scaled over the wall, walking purposefully over to the captive man. Hazel kept her eyes trained on the girl, face stern, ready for the slightest sign of impending harm.

"Whadda you want?" Zoro asked her. Hazel pulled herself to sit on the wall as Coby yelled for Luffy to do something, ready to spring into action at a moment's notice.

"Why don't you do it yourself?" Luffy countered.

"Get lost! Do you want to get killed?" Hazel tensed. The words themselves were threatening, but the way he said them...It was clear he was warning her away from something, but Hazel wasn't too sure it was _him_.

"I made these rice balls for you!" The girl said sweetly, holding the food out in her small hands. Hazel's brows raised into her hairline. "I thought you might need some food! It's the first time I've ever made rice balls. I hope you like them!" Hazel relaxed in her seat on the wall; some demonic beast…

"I'm...not hungry! Now beat it, and take that stuff with you!" The "beast" tried to warn the girl off. "I don't want it! Now get outta here! Or I'll stomp you to death!" Suddenly, the gate to the yard flew open, and Hazel scrambled to get back over the wall so she wouldn't be spotted.

"Roronoa Zoro! You shouldn't pick on little girls! I'll tell my father on you!" In walked a young man with the most obnoxious blonde bowl cut Hazel had ever seen. He was dressed in a nice suit, flanked by two soldiers, and the way he spoke already had Hazel's teeth grinding.

"Who's that weirdo?"

"He must be a high-ranking Marine officer. Now that little girl will be safe." Hazel just shook her head.

"She wasn't ever in any real danger…" She was sure of that, regardless of how this Zoro acted towards her. And in the event she was wrong, Hazel knew she could've protected her anyway.

"Well…" Zoro scoffed. "If it isn't the idiot son, living off daddy's wealth."

"Did you just call me an idiot?" Bowl Cut sneered. "A man in your position should guard his tongue, or he could lose it!" He turned to the girl, causing Hazel's muscles to tense, ready to spring. "Little girl, did you bring those rice balls for me? How thoughtful."

"Hey, give it back!" The girl shouted as he snatched one up, immediately shoving it whole into his mouth, only to sputter and spit it back out.

"Blech! Disgusting! It's sweet! There's sugar on it! Rice balls are supposed to be seasoned with salt, not sugar!" He whined.

"B-but I like sweets, so I figured sugar would be better!" Bowl Cut merely kicked the other rice ball out of her tiny hand, stamping it into the dirt.

"These are completely inedible!"

"Stop please! You're ruining them!" Hazel clenched her jaw, wanting to jump in and help. Instead, she took a deep breath to try and steady herself.

_It wouldn't do good to just go running in_, she told herself. _You could cause more harm than good, and the girl's not getting hurt. Yet…_

"Don't worry, I'm sure the ants find them delicious!" Bowl Cut laughed while the girl started crying, causing Hazel's heart to break a little. She hated seeing kids cry.

"Why...I worked so hard to make them…"

"Oh, stop that crying! This is why I hate kids! It's your own fault!" He pointed to a sign near the cross. "Can't you read this sign?! It says 'anyone aiding this prisoner shall be found guilty of the crimes he has committed. - Captain Morgan'. I'm sure you've heard how scary my father can be! If you were an adult, you would be put to death." Hazel sneered as she watched him step away from the girl and walk over to his soldiers. Lackeys, more like…

"You there, throw that brat over the fence!" Hazel's eyes widened as the soldier protested. "I'm ordering you to throw that little brat over the fence! Are you going to disobey a direct order?! I'll tell daddy on you!" Bowl Cut threatened, and Hazel swore she'd knock him to the floor before they left this place.

"Y-yes sir, right away!" The Marine stammered, scooping the little girl up and launching her in their direction.

"Luffy-!"

Her half-shout wasn't needed, as Luffy had already caught the girl and fallen to the ground, both perfectly safe. Hazel checked her over briefly while Coby asked if she was ok, then stalked over to where Luffy stood adjusting his hat.

She could still hear Bowl Cut's sniveling from the other side of the wall, clenching her arms across her chest before she climbed back up after Luffy.

"Hahaha! I won't dream of breaking my word! If you survive out here for a month, I'll let you go!" Were the last things he said before leaving the yard. When they could no longer hear his self-important laughter, the siblings dropped down into the yard, stalking over to the man who seemed to be the center of all the current trouble.

"You still here?" He spoke, noticing them. "Better not let Helmeppo's father catch you."

"What a dumb name…" Hazel like Bowl Cut better. Maybe even "Whiny Daddy's Boy", but that was too long.

"Look, I'm looking for good men to join my pirate crew." Luffy said, ignoring the warning.

"Pirate crew," Zoro grinned again. "You think I'd lower myself to that level? No thanks!"

"But becoming a pirate's my dream! What's wrong with it?" Luffy pouted slightly.

"Only interested in bounties if they aren't yours?" Zoro regarded her, dark eyes piercing her own, then turned back to her captain.

"You think if you untie me I'm gonna join your pirate crew?"

"I haven't decided if I'll ask you yet. You've got a pretty bad reputation, you know?"

"Bad reputation, huh?" Zoro huffed, smile still in place as if they were talking about the weather. "Well, anyway, I don't go for that kind of deal. I got my own plans for the future. I don't need your help, I can get out of here on my own. All I have to do is last here for a month, and I'm a free man! Captain Morgan's idiot son promised me…" Hazel furrowed her brows at this, skeptical of the whole thing. The man seemed to believe it, though…"All I've got to do is survive here for one month. Then I'll be free to pursue my dream!"

"Hm, I see…" Luffy said, smiling wide. "I don't think I could last one week without food!"

"I hate to say it, but I don't think I could either. It's admirable that you'd try, even if it does seem to be a waste," Hazel grinned at the small glare he sent her way.

"You and I are just different. I have more willpower," Hazel snorted. That was definitely true, but considering Luffy, it also wasn't saying much. "So go look for a crew elsewhere...hey, wait a minute!" He called when the pair turned to leave. "Pick that up for me." Hazel was confused for a moment, until Luffy picked up the dirty rice ball from the ground.

"You're not gonna eat it?! It's more of a dirt ball than a rice ball now...I know you're hungry, but this-"

"Shut up!" Zoro cut him off, opening his mouth wide. "Just shut up and feed it to me! And don't miss one grain of rice!" Luffy quickly did as he said. Zoro's cheeks puffed as he gagged, but despite his hacking he did manage to swallow it all down. Hazel felt respect swell through her at the act.

"I told you. It was mostly dirt. You wanna kill yourself?"

"Luffy…" Hazel admonished softly, shaking her head.

"T-tell the kid…" Zoro coughed. "Tell her I said it was delicious. Tell her I ate it all." Hazel nodded as Luffy let out a little laugh, and with nothing else to say, the duo turned and left.

* * *

"Really?!"

"Yeah! He ate it all up!"

"I'm so glad!"

They'd made their way back into town, easily finding Coby and the young girl, who'd introduced herself as Rika. When Luffy told her that Zoro had eaten her food and loved it, even despite what Bowl Cut Helmeppo had done, her face lit up like a firework.

"Could that guy really be as bad as everyone says?" Coby asked.

"He's not a bad guy!" The girl insisted, and Hazel felt the need to nod along with her. It was solidified in her mind; regardless of what circumstances put him in prison, Roronoa Zoro was not an evil man. "Everyone in town is afraid of him, but he hasn't done anything wrong!" The girl explained. "He got thrown into prison because of me. Captain Morgan's son had a bunch of mean dogs! They attacked me! Roronoa Zoro saved me! Besides, those dogs were running loose and scaring everybody in town."

"That's why Zoro is in prison…" Luffy realized. "Because he hurt that guy's dog to save you?"

"Yes!"

"That makes sense!" Coby reasoned. "Zoro-san is really scary, but he only goes after people with a price on their heads. And he wouldn't get thrown in prison for that!"

"Captain Morgan and his son are the bad ones! They put people to death for no reason at all! Everyone's really afraid of them."

"Hmm…" Hazel hummed, bouncing her leg. "Luffy, I'm going for a walk. Find me later?"

"Sure!"

"Wha? Where are you going?!" Coby yelled after her.

"Just around!" She waved. "Just need to move around a bit!" As Coby switched to asking Luffy why she just wandered off, Hazel made a path back to the Marine base. She did need to stretch her legs a bit, all the talk of corrupt Marine captains was making her twitchy. In truth, she'd also started hearing Bowl Cut's annoying laughter from down the street, and she didn't think she'd be able to contain herself if forced to deal with him right now. Luffy would handle things.

She also wanted to talk some more to her potential future crewmate. She knew Luffy hadn't really given up completely on asking him, and after hearing more about how he'd landed in prison, the decision seemed obvious.

She scaled the wall, slightly more difficult this time without her rubber-band-brother's help, but she was fit in her own right too, and so still made it over without too much struggle. The thump of her feet landing in the yard drew Zoro's attention to her, and she couldn't help but smile at the glare he sent her.

"The hell do you want, woman? I'm not joining your little pirate crew…"

"That's what you say _now_, but don't worry; I'm not here to convince you." He raised a green brow at her. "I just wanted to chat a bit, that's all. Rika told us what happened. So if I've got this right...it's 'Roronoa Zoro, Pirate Hunter, demonic beast...and defender of little girls'?" The shade of red blooming across his face was almost comical.

"I've never called myself 'Pirate Hunter'..." He said, forcing the red out of his cheeks. The violet-haired woman's smile only grew, and not for the first time, Zoro wondered what her motive was. On the surface, she appeared unassuming, but he could see the muscle lining her calves, the definition of her arms; she was no weakling.

"Well as a pirate, that's mildly comforting, thank you," She chimed. "The fact that's the part you deny is rather telling, don't you think? It's very admirable of you. Only weak men feel the need to hurt those who are defenseless…" After a brief pause, she thrust a hand out, as though for him to shake. "I'm Monkey D. Hazel. It's nice to meet you! Ahh…" she quickly pulled the hand back to run through royal purple locks. "My bad, heh…"

"What do you want?"

"Like I said, I just wanted to chat! I was feeling a bit antsy, and as my brother's not ready to leave yet, I figured I'd come take a walk by you. Don't tell me you can't use the company," Hazel teased.

"That kid's your brother?" Zoro asked, genuinely surprised. She hummed in confirmation.

"And my captain. I'll follow him anywhere!" She beamed at him, genuinely this time, catching Zoro a bit off guard with how bright it seemed. Their attention was diverted when they heard another thump on the grass, turning to see Luffy walking over to them.

"Ah good, you found me," Hazel told him.

"You again? Give it a rest, if this is about me joining your pirate crew, my answer is still no!" Zoro protested, looking between the siblings.

"Call me Luffy," the boy said, ignoring him. "I'll untie you if you'll join my pirate crew, ok?" Hazel had to turn to muffle her laughter. She knew it.

"You don't listen, boy! I've got my own mission, and it doesn't involve becoming a stinking pirate!"

"You're too good to be a pirate?" Luffy drawled, skeptical. "You, a bounty hunter? Who everyone thinks is some sort of demon?"

"Hehe, well, when you put it like that…" Zoro glared at them both.

"I don't care what people think. I live by my own code. I've never done anything I regret, and I don't intend to in the future. Which is why I'll never be a pirate!" Luffy was silent for a moment, taking in what Zoro had said.

"Sorry, but I've made up my mind! You're gonna join my crew!"

"I don't care what you've decided!" Hazel just dissolved into a fit of giggles.

"I heard you can use a sword!"

"Hmph, if I wasn't tied up, I'd show you…" Zoro growled.

"So where are your swords now?"

"They took them from me. The captain's idiot son…" He clenched his jaw. "Next to my life, those swords are my dearest treasures."

"Hm...treasures, huh? Too bad they took them." Luffy thought for a moment. "I know! I'll get your swords from the idiot son!"

"What?"

"Then if you want your swords back, you'll have to join my crew!"

"YOU LITTLE RAT!"

"Don't forget, Mr. Not-A-Pirate-Hunter...we're pirates," Hazel smirked, pointing between herself and her brother.

"You coming, Hazel?" Luffy asked, once again ignoring the other man's protests.

"The less time I spend around Blondie the better, so I'll stay here...for now." She still planned to hit him later. Luffy just nodded and ran off, ignoring Zoro's shouts for him to come back.

"He's going into the fortress...that's one dumb pirate!" He said, staring after the boy as he ran off. Hazel made her way over to him, leaning against his post.

"You'll find things have a way of working out for him…"

* * *

Despite what she'd said, Hazel did decide to change location, choosing once again to perch on top of the wall for a better view. She situated herself near a tree for cover, able to see on either side of the wall, but not able to be seen unless one really looked for her. She could hear the sounds of chaos from on top of the roof, felt the quaking from what looked to be half a statue hitting the ground, and could only assume Luffy was on the right track. She hoped, anyway.

It was only slightly surprising when Coby came running by, shimmying his way up and over the wall to ask Zoro where Luffy'd gone. She could only hear snippets of conversation from where she sat, but she jolted slightly in concern when she saw the boy begin undoing Zoro's restraints. Not that she wanted Zoro to remain tied to a wooden post, it did seem very uncomfortable, but Coby was willingly putting himself in danger.

Then she heard the boom, coming from the roof, and the next thing she knew Coby fell, clutching his shoulder. Her eyes widened, and she moved to jump back into the field to check on him when he started screaming.

"AHH! I've been shot! Blood! I'm bleeding! I'm gonna die!" Hazel touched the earth and ran over, cursing that she'd left her pack in the dinghy. She had bandages in there.

"Oh good, you're alive," Zoro said, and Coby stopped screaming, shocked at his blasé tone. Hazel checked over the wound, sighing in relief when it appeared to be rather shallow. "Now get outta here, they're on their way down!"

"But…" Coby huffed, and Hazel helped him sit up. "I haven't...untied you yet…"

"Coby, I can do it-!"

"Don't worry about me! I just have to survive the month and they'll let me go! So just beat it-!"

"They're not going to let you go!" Coby suddenly yelled, cutting the man off. "You're going to be executed three days from now!"

"What?!" Hazel sneered. She knew something was up.

"What are you saying?!" Zoro protested, not believing him. "That idiot promised me! If I survive here for a month, I'll be set free!"

"He never intended to keep that promise! That's why Luffy-san punched Helmeppo! Because he found out Helmeppo lied to you!" Zoro stared wide-eyed, shock clear on his face. He'd truly never considered that Bowl Cut had been lying…

"What…?!" Hazel stood up, coming nearer to the man and looking him in the eye.

"Sounds as though the Marines are your enemy anyway, Mr. Not-A-Pirate-Hunter…"

"Please! If we untie you, will you help Luffy-san?! He and Hazel-san saved my life," Well, it was mostly Luffy, but she appreciated the sentiment anyway. "I won't ask you to become a pirate, but Luffy-san is really strong and so are you! So if you team up, you can escape from here! Please, help him!" Before Zoro could answer, a shout rang from the entrance to the yard.

"Stay where you are!" Marine soldiers stood ready with guns aimed right at them. "Captain Morgan has ordered your immediate execution!"

Another man entered the yard, wearing a long officer's coat. His lower jaw was covered in metal, and where his right arm should've been, instead was a large axe, situated behind his head.

Captain Morgan.

"Surround the fortress! If that rascal in the straw hat escapes, you'll all be sorry!"

"Luffy-!" Hazel gasped, worry springing through her. The only consolation was that he clearly hadn't been caught yet.

"You four aren't simple outlaws, are you? You're trying to overthrow me!" Ah great, megalomania. "Roronoa Zoro! Peasants and Pirates may tremble at your name, but you're no match for the Great One! You may be a barracuda, but I'm a great white shark! Take aim!"

The line of soldiers braced themselves, a line of rifles all aimed at the trio. Hazel stood in front of the other two as best she could, ready to take the brunt of it if she had to. She worried her lip between her teeth, trying to steady her breath as she faced her possible death.

She vaguely heard Coby telling her to move, but she wasn't about to let the boy get shot again if she could help it. They'd have to go through her, first.

Right as the Captain yelled for his men to fire, she heard the shout above her head, followed by a tell-tale _boing_ as Luffy landed right in front of her. His arms were out to the sides, taking every single bullet into his rubbery body. The two behind her gasped, but she merely let out a shaky, but relieved, breathe.

"Bullets can't hurt me!" Luffy shouted, sending the bullets right back at their masters.

"Nice timing, Cap…" Hazel breathed as Luffy laughed, the Marines scrambling out of the way of the gunfire.

"What are you?!" Zoro shouted, Coby in shock on the ground. Luffy just shot him a smug grin.

"I'm the guy who's gonna be King of the Pirates!" Switching gears, he held out three swords to the swordsman. "So which swords are yours? I didn't know, so I brought all three!"

"They're all mine. I practice santoryu, three-sword style." Hazel tried to think of how that worked, but came up empty. She'd just have to see him in action.

"If you fight the Marines with me here and now, in the eyes of the government, you'll be one of the bad guys!" Luffy told him, still holding his swords and leaving him tied to the post. "Of course, you could obey the law and let them kill you…" Hazel grinned at Zoro's excited look.

"You must be demon spawn, but I'm not ready to die without a fight! Alright! You've got yourself a pirate!"

"Really?!" Luffy gasped, throwing his hands in the air. "You'll join my crew?!"

"I don't really have much choice! Now, untie me!"

"Luffy, you get that side! I got this one!" Together, they worked at Zoro's arms, trying to unravel the knots keeping him captive. They were very tightly woven, and no matter how much she pulled, Hazel couldn't get a good enough grip on it.

"C'mon, hurry up!"

"These knots are too tight! I can't untie them!"

"If only we could just cut through them…" Hazel mused, eyes landing on the three discarded swords.

"I'm trying, just hold on!" Luffy continued trying to undo the knot.

"There's no time!"

"How about this?" Hazel asked, drawing one of his swords free. She began sawing at the rope, drawing the ire of the swordsman her way.

"Oi! Careful with that!"

"LUFFY-SAN! ZORO-SAN! HAZEL-SAN! WATCH OUT!" Hazel looked up at Coby's scream, eyes widening at the sight of the Marines barreling towards them, swords drawn.

"There! One arm free!" Luffy exclaimed.

"GIVE ME MY SWORDS, MORON!"

Hazel tossed him the sword right as the Marines descended upon them. She knelt to the ground to brace for the impact, curling up in hopes of providing a smaller target, only to hear the _clang_ of metal on metal.

Zoro stood directly in front of her, all three swords drawn and holding back the horde. He had one in each hand, plus the third in his mouth of all places, but despite the odd placement, it looked natural. She stared up at him in awe, meeting his eyes for a moment before he- was he smirking at her?!

"Wow! He's cool!" Luffy yelled from behind her, and despite his cocky look, she had to agree. Somewhat. Zoro finally glanced away from her, glaring at the Marines surrounding them.

"The first one who moves…dies." The man above her spoke surprisingly clearly despite having a literal sword in his mouth. _Damn_...Hazel finally scrambled away, standing up next to Luffy to dust herself off. "Alright, so I'm a pirate." Zoro said to the two, ignoring the blades at his back. "I gave you my word. I've fought the Marines, so I'm officially an outlaw. But hear this! I have a mission to fulfill! I'm going to be the World's Greatest Swordsman! All I have left is my destiny! My name may be infamous, but it's gonna shake the world!" He said it was such conviction, Hazel couldn't help the grin that spread across her face. He definitely fit right in. "But you are making me become a pirate! So if I have to abandon my dream for any reason, then I'm gonna make you commit _hara kiri_!"

Hazel crossed her arms while Luffy grinned, excited by the declaration. "The World's Greatest Swordsman, that's great! And it's fitting since your new boss is going to be King of the Pirates! Anything else would make me look bad!"

"Don't worry, Zoro! You fit right into our brand of chaos!"

"Hmph! You talk big…"

"Why do you hesitate?!" Captain Morgan interrupted to yell at his subordinates. "Hack those brigands into mince meat, now!"

"Zoro, Hazel, Duck!" Luffy yelled, rearing back his leg. Hazel dropped immediately, pulling Zoro with her by the front of his shirt. "Gum gum…"Just in time, apparently, as Luffy's leg soared above them, knocking the Marines all the way back to their captain. "Whip!"

"Wow, he's incredible!" Coby said, reminding Hazel that he was still there!

"What the devil are you?" Hazel made her way over to Coby, taking up a defensive stance in front of the boy, in case any Marines had the bright idea to go after the weaker party.

"I'm a rubber man!" Luffy answered.

As the three dusted themselves off, Hazel looked back to the Marines, now a fair distance away. Their captain appeared to be scolding them about something, but to her surprise, the Marines all began to turn their guns towards themselves.

"Hey-!"

"Something wrong with those Marines!" Zoro yelled, having noticed the same thing. Luffy ran straight for them, startling them from shooting themselves, and launched himself at the axe-handed man. Hazel couldn't hear what was said from where she was, but the two began to fight; Morgan swinging his sharp "arm" at her brother while he dodged. At one point, he even sliced the fence clean in half!

"Wow! That's sharp!" Coby yelled.

"LUFFY! DON'T GET SLICED!" Hazel yelled, worried despite her faith in him. Bullets may not hurt, but he could still get cut just as easily as anybody else. If he died here, she'd kill him.

Luckily, Luffy didn't need the encouragement, sending his feet straight into the Marine's chest, knocking him to the ground. He continued to twirl and dodge, landing hits and kicks on the large man whenever he could, sending him to the floor every time.

"He's just too strong!" Coby commented, awed by Luffy's ability in battle.

"Don't let _him_ hear you say that, his ego is big enough as it is!" Hazel quipped, startling when she realized they were no longer alone. Her eyes widened as they met the barrel of a gun, a matching one pointed at Coby's face, held by Bowl Cut himself.

"Stop!" Luffy punched the captain again. "I said stop you idiot!" Bowl Cut yelled. "One false move and these two get it! If you even blink, I'll shoot!" Hazel's eyes narrowed.

"Why you little-"

"LUFFY-SAN!" Coby yelled. "DON'T LET THEM WIN BECAUSE OF ME! LET HIM KILL ME!"

"We're not dying today, Coby…" Hazel muttered.

Luffy smiled. "You're a good guy, Coby! Hey! Idiot-Son-Of-The-Captain! Coby means it!"

"Hey! I told you not to move or I'd shoot!" Bowl Cut yelled again as Luffy drew his fist back. "Fine! I'll just shoot them then!"

"LUFFY-SAN! BEHIND YOU!" Morgan had come up right behind Luffy, ready to swing his axe-arm across his rubber body.

"DADDY KILL HIM!" Bowl Cut screamed. Hazel dropped. Her leg shot out as she stood on her hands. Her foot connected with his chin. The guns fell from his hands.

"PISTOL!" Came Luffy's cry followed closely by his fist, catching Helmeppo in the stomach as he flew in the air from Hazel's kick. The blonde continued a few feet, before falling to the ground, thoroughly passed out. Morgan, meanwhile, had frozen, falling unconscious himself as Zoro stood next to him, swords at the ready.

Hazel stood back up as the cry of defeat rang from the Marines. She glared down at Bowl Cut's body; it wasn't a punch, but kicking him still felt like pretty good payback for his attitude. Zoro seemed to say something to the Marines, though Hazel couldn't hear, and suddenly a cry of cheer rang up from the men.

"We're free! Morgan's reign of terror is over!"

"They're happy we defeated their captain," Luffy remarked as Hazel and Coby came up next to him.

"That means Captain Morgan was ruling through fear!" Coby happily exclaimed.

"Pirates helping Marines...who wouldda thought?" Hazel laughed. Suddenly, they're newly acquired swordsman fell to the ground.

"Zoro!"

"Hmm, he's likely overexerted himself," Hazel explained, pushing the nearly delirious man into a sitting position. "How long did he say he was tied up for? Nine days?! We need to get him some food, pronto! Luffy, help me!" Her brother did as he was asked, helping Zoro lean his right arm across his shoulders, Hazel carrying the left.

They made their way back through the town, the Marines too preoccupied with their happiness to stop them. The townspeople all jumped out of their way in fright as they passed, making transport easy. The only one who didn't run in fright was a familiar little girl, brunette pigtails bouncing behind her as she urged them to follow her home.

* * *

"I'm stuffed! Not eating for nine days was worse than I thought!" Zoro yelled, smile wide across his face after stuffing his stomach full. Rika's mother had been kind enough to feed them all as a thank you. She'd provided bandages for Coby's arm, and in the meantime they'd filled Zoro in on their whole story so far. Hazel would have so much to write about when she got back to her notebook.

"See, you'd never have survived the whole month!"

"Funny, you seem hungrier than me…"

"That's just his natural state, you'll get used to it!"

"It's kind of you to feed me along with the heroes, ma'am!"

"It's the least I can do!" Rika's mother said from the stove. "You four saved the town!"

"Dunno how much 'saving' I did," Hazel pouted. "I didn't even get to fight anybody."

"Wow, you're great!" Rika told Luffy.

"Yeah, I'm kinda great! And I'm going to become a lot greater!" Great, now his ego wouldn't fit on the boat.

"So, what's next?" Zoro asked, fully sated and ready for business. Luffy gulped down his food.

"We're headed for the Grand Line!"

"Huh?! That's suicide!" Coby protested. "There are only three of you! If you go there, you'll just be sailing to your deaths! The most bloodthirsty pirates in the world are there!"

"Well, I guess if we're after the One Piece, the Grand Line is where we have to go." Zoro reasoned, not appearing at all daunted by the prospect.

"Zoro-san, you agree with him?!"

"What's it to you? You're not coming with us!"

"Hazel-san, talk some sense into them!"

"We'll have to go there eventually, why wait?"

"I'm worried about you! Is that so wrong?! Can't I worry about my friends?!" Hazel softened, smiling sympathetically towards him. "Luffy-san, we haven't known each other for very long, but we're friends, aren't we?"

"We're going our separate ways…" Luffy began, beaming at the slightly younger boy. "But we'll always be friends!"

The boy lit up, adoration clear on his face as he stared at Luffy. "You're the first real friends I've ever had...no one ever stuck up for me! I wouldn't even stick up for me! But the three of you taught me to fight for what I believe in!"

"That's why I'm going to the Grand Line!"

"Makes sense to me." Hazel just nodded along.

"Wait, that's not what I - I'm trying to convince you that it's too reckless!"

"What about your plans?" Zoro asked suddenly, knocking Coby's forehead with the butt of his katana. "You were a cabin boy on Alvida's pirate ship for two years. Watch out for the Marine's intelligence. If they find out your background, they won't let you enlist," He explained.

"I'm sure continuing to try and convince us not to be so 'reckless' won't endeavor you to the Marines, either." Hazel further pointed out. Just then the door opened, drawing everyone's attention.

"Excuse me," said the Marine currently standing in the doorway. "You folks are pirates, correct?"

"That's right! I even have a real crewman now! Which makes me a genuine pirate captain!" Hazel wanted to make a comment, but figured having your big sister tag along wasn't the same as genuinely recruiting someone. She'd let it slide for now.

"Um, you saved our base, and this town…" The Marine started. "And we are truly grateful to you. However, we're still Marines, and we can't shelter pirates. I'm sorry, but I have to ask you to leave. But to show our gratitude, we won't report you to the Marines." The decision caused an uproar from the citizens outside, appalled that they were ousting their saviors. The trio of pirates merely stood from the table, gearing up to leave.

"I guess we'll be going then. Ma'am, thanks for the meal…" Luffy told Rika's mom, ignoring the questioning from Rika and Coby that they were already leaving.

They stalked past them to the door, only pausing for a moment when the Marine asked Coby if he was going with them. "I'm...I'm not one of them!" He shouted, but Hazel could hear the emotion in his voice.

"Excuse me, pirates?" The Marine called, unsure. "Is that true?"

Luffy seemed to think for a moment, while Zoro and Hazel stood and watched from the other side of the doorway. "Let me explain. I know all about his past…" he started, drawing a quiet protest from Coby's lips. "See, there was this secret island! And a big pirate woman, her name was Alvida! She was really mean, and for two years, this guy-"

"SHUT UP!" Coby yelled, knocking Luffy backward with his fist. Unseen by the others, the pirates smiled at the action.

"Why you-!" Luffy yelled with a grin, punching Coby back. "Take that! And this!"

"Enough!" The Marine yelled. "Stop disturbing the peace!"

"Hey, hey…" Zoro grabbed Luffy by the shirt while Coby lay beaten on the floor. "That's enough."

"You've made your point, Cap…"

"It's clear that you're not friends!" The Marine pointed in their direction. "Please leave town, now!" And so they did, winding between the rows of Marines sent to act as an escort to the shore, making sure they actually left.

"Catch us if you can!" Zoro taunted one, drawing a gasp from the poor thing and a laugh from the violet-haired woman. The trio didn't turn back until they'd finally made it to their dinghy, pausing to say a silent goodbye to the boy they'd befriended. "That was some pretty bad acting, I wouldn't be surprised if they saw through it." Zoro commented.

"It can't be helped, something had to be done after all," Hazel said, climbing into the boat and immediately pulling out her notebook and pencil. She had so much to jot down, so she sat on a barrel and set to work.

"It's all up to Coby, now. He'll get in somehow!" Luffy sounded very sure.

"Well, it's a good time to be leaving." Zoro said, staring out at the sea. "Everyone hates us, that's the way pirates should leave town!"

"Hahaha I guess that's true!"

"Lu-Lu-Luffy-san!" Came the cry from the shore, startling the three pirates. Coby was doubled over, catching his breath, but stood up to a full salute and shouted, "Thank you very much, Captain Luffy! I'll never forget all you did for me!"

"This is a new one, a pirate being saluted by the Marines," Zoro quipped, smirking while Luffy laughed. The two finally climbed into the boat, Zoro pulling them out to sea while Luffy waved goodbye.

"We'll meet again, Coby!"

"'Ten-shun!" The Marine lieutenant yelled, rows of Marines lined up to salute them behind Coby. Luffy cheered as they sailed away, and Hazel waved briefly before turning back to her work. When they were far enough away that the Marines only seemed like white and blue dots on the shore, Luffy finally plopped down between his two shipmates.

"We're on our way to the Grand Line!"

* * *

**Once again thank you everyone for checking this out! It's the longest chapter I've ever written haha Hopefully more action for Hazel next time! Things should pick up a bit easier now that we're past the first hump! See you soon!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hello again! I just wanna say thank you to everyone who's decided to follow along on this crazy adventure! I hope you're enjoying Hazel, she's been a lot of fun for me to write lol Things pick up a little more in this chapter, and it's only going to get better from here! Anyway, without further ado, here's chapter 2!**

* * *

_And so our fledgling crew left Shells Town, waving goodbye to one friend, but saying "Hello" to a brand new one. Ambitions as large as our captain's, the future World's Greatest Swordsman was a welcome addition to our-_!

"So, I suppose this means you're the first mate?" Zoro asked suddenly, startling Hazel from her notebook.

"Eh?!" Her gray eyes widened and she furiously shook her head rather childishly. "Of course not! You can be first mate!"

"What? I have no interest in that! Besides, you were here first!" The green-haired man protested, acting no better than the woman in front of him.

"It doesn't matter if I was here first! I'm the captain's big sister! The last thing we need is Luffy's role as captain plagued with doubts of nepotism, right Luffy?"

"Right! I don't need to be flayed with pots of nep-nepo-nemotodes!" Luffy grinned, proud of himself. Hazel just swung her blank stare in Zoro's direction.

"You see? It's an unspeakable offense…"

"Woman! Stop trying to shirk your duties onto me!"

"I'm not! I've got other duties! And don't call me woman..." She pouted. "Besides, what else are you gonna do on the ship, huh?!"

"Hazel, he's the swordsman! That's important!"

"He can be both!"

"I don't want it, dammit! Unless the captain says I gotta, I'm not doing it!" And with that said, Zoro plopped himself on the floor, closing his eyes as though to take a nap. Luffy just snickered at the way Hazel fumed, appalled at the way the swordsman was_ already snoring._ How the hell did he manage to fall asleep so fast?!

"Whatever, as far as I'm concerned, he's the first mate...even if I'm the only one who thinks it."

"_Shishishi_ it's fun having a real crewman!"

"What am I, chopped liver?" Hazel deadpanned, but Luffy just kept laughing. Rolling her eyes, she settled back against the mast, returning to her notes. Eventually, their captain settled down, resting against the bow of the little boat as they drifted across the waves. After a few hours, the sun long set, Hazel looked up to see him passed out.

She set her notebook down, reaching into her pack for a blanket and placing it over him. She hadn't been able to pack much, and most of their things had been lost in the whirlpool anyway, but she'd at least made sure to pack some essentials. Sitting back in her seat, she turned to see Zoro awake, watching her.

"Can I help you with something?" She teased, the argument from earlier long forgotten. The man was silent for a moment.

"So…" He started, leaning back against the side of the boat. "What made you decide to follow the captain?"

"I mean, we've established he's my brother, right?" At his sharp look, Hazel let out a short bark of laughter, quickly covering her mouth to muffle the loud sound. Luffy wouldn't wake up to it, but it was still jarring on the silent, dark, sea. "I believe in him. It's really as simple as that. Luffy's _going_ to be the King of the Pirates...and I'm gonna write the whole thing down."

"Like a record-keeper?" He asked, intrigued. Hazel nodded with a hum.

"Sorta? It's my dream to write the greatest story ever told...the obvious choice for me is to write my baby brother's journey to become the Pirate King! I guess you could call me a record-keeper, but I don't plan to make it a boring read." She beamed, and Zoro could feel some of that brightness once again. It seemed to be a family trait. "I suppose adding your journey to become the World's Greatest Swordsman will only add to the excitement factor, huh?"

"Heh, make sure you take down every detail then!" He matched her grin.

"Hehe, you got it!" She leaned back against the hull, using her pack as a sort of pillow. "So, then, what's your story? Why 'World's Greatest Swordsman'?" Zoro was silent, and she sat up a second to see if he was paying attention. "Zoro?"

"Ask me again another day…" was all he said, confusing the woman.

"O-ok…" She lay back down, staring at the stars with a small frown. "But you know if you want me to 'take down every detail', I'm gonna need more than that...right?" She asked, not unkindly. He hummed in acknowledgement.

"I'll probably tell you someday, just...not today," He seemed distant, like he was stuck in a memory, and so Hazel didn't pry. "Go to sleep, I'll keep watch."

It was as if he'd pulled the yawn right out of her, as her mouth opened wide right as he spoke. "Alrighty...g'night, Mr. Pirate-Hunter-Turned-Pirate…" Zoro just smirked, unseen, and huffed a small laugh. Hopefully the nickname wouldn't stick.

* * *

"I'm starving…" Luffy whined the next morning.

"We forgot to stock up on food before we left Shells Town…" Hazel grumbled, followed by a similar sound from her stomach.

"Don't you think it's strange that you guys can't navigate?" Zoro asked, leaning on the side of the boat. Hazel had to roll her eyes at that; he'd flat out told them he wasn't a navigator either.

"No, drifting has worked pretty well, so far," Luffy answered.

"Ya know, except for the whirlpool…" Hazel muttered.

"Yeah! But we survived, so it's ok!" Luffy grinned at her, and she just shook her head.

"What about you?" Luffy asked, turning back to the green swordsman. "You're supposed to be the 'Holy Terror of the Seas'!"

"I don't recall ever calling myself that. I followed a pirate I was after out to sea," Zoro explained. "But I couldn't find my way back to my village. So I made the best of things. I went after pirates that were in the area. I had to earn money somehow…"

"Hmph! So you got lost?"

"And you're lecturing _us_ about navigation?!"

"Oi! You don't have to put it like that! Anyway," He deflected. "What kind of pirate doesn't know how to navigate a ship? It's ridiculous! At this rate we'll never make it to the Grand Line." Hazel continued glaring in his direction, choosing to withhold her comments about how he was also a pirate who couldn't navigate now. "We've gotta recruit a navigator as soon as possible."

"On that, we can agree…"

"And we need a cook, and a musician, and-"

"THOSE CAN WAIT!" Apparently wiped out from the conversation, the two men flopped onto their backs, tongues lolling out of their mouths.

"I'm starving!"

"We'll find food as soon as we land…" Hazel promised, not knowing when that would be, but offering comfort where she could. She bit her lip as she scanned the sea around them; the vast, endless, blue sea...her stomach gurgled as she let out a sigh.

"Hey, it's a bird…" Zoro suddenly said, staring up at the sky.

"It looks pretty big…" Luffy noted. Hazel looked up to see what they were talking about, only to see a big, bright, pink bird flying right above their ship.

"What kinda bird is that?" She asked, but the boys ignored her. "Ya know, this better not become a theme, you two…" She grumbled.

"Let's eat it!" Luffy shouted suddenly, springing to his feet.

"Huh? How?"

"Leave it to me! I'll catch it!" Luffy yelled, stretching his arms to grab the top of the sail. "Gum gum…" He sprang off. "ROCKET!"

"Okay…" Zoro muttered, shielding his eyes as he and Hazel watched the boy fly through the air. He zoomed toward the bird, straight as an arrow, only to suddenly stop short.

"What?!" The two said in disbelief. Squinting so she could see better, Hazel found his legs dangling in the air, suspended by the bird who had Luffy's head...in its mouth?

"HELP!" Luffy shouted.

"YOU IDIOT!"

"LUFFY! _YOU_ WERE SUPPOSED TO CATCH _IT_, NOT THE OTHER WAY AROUND, YOU FLUFFIN' NOODLE-BRAIN!"

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?! DAMMIT!" Zoro grabbed the oars, immediately rowing after the bird and Luffy at a speed that knocked Hazel off her feet.

"Oof!" She rubbed her bottom as she hit the boat, her elbow sore as it had hit the side of the boat. "Warn a girl next time, please!"

"No time!" Was all he said.

They weren't rowing for very long before they heard voices. Squinting past Zoro's green head, Hazel spotted three men flailing in the water, screaming, "It's a ship! Hey wait!"

"Huh?" Zoro turned his head, spotting them. "Shipwreck survivors? at a time like this? I can't stop! Just grab on, and climb in!"

"Wait there's no room!"

"What'd they say?"

But there was no more time to dwell on it as Zoro rowed right through the men, barely giving them time to grab hold of the dinghy. The three men scrambled inside, forcing Hazel close to the swordsman to make room. Curling herself into a ball, she glared at the four men occupying her space before moving her gaze back to the bird still flying in the sky.

"You made it! Good!" Zoro said to the three men, without looking back at them.

"You would have left us to die!"

"What kind of person are you?" One of them huffed, all three trying to catch their breaths from nearly drowning.

"Hey, stop the ship," the man in the middle commanded, drawing a sword. He was wearing a winter-styled cap, with a clown-like jolly roger printed on the front. "We're pirates of Buggy the Clown!" Guess that explained the jolly roger.

"Huh?" Zoro said as Hazel cracked her knuckles with a grin.

A few well placed _thwacks_ later, and the opposing pirates were singing a much different tune.

"We're sorry Mr. Pirate Hunter Zoro, sir! We didn't realize who you were!" Hazel scowled.

"I'm the one who hit you…"

"O-of course! Mr. Pirate Hunter would have a strong woman as well! S-sorry ma'am!" She growled. Why does every pirate they come across think she's someone's "woman"?

"You bozos made us lose my brother!" She scolded, clenching her fists.

"Keep rowing! If there's any land nearby, he'll get there." Zoro commanded the three, who'd been forced into rowing the boat for their rudeness. Hazel turned back to the sea, trying to ignore the worry creeping through her. Hopefully that bird didn't decide to drop him into the water...they'd never find him then. "So, how did you pirates end up soaking in the middle of the ocean?"

"I'll tell you how! Thanks for reminding us!" Jolly Roger Hat said, more than happy to answer Zoro's question if it meant not incurring either pirate's wrath.

"It was that woman!"

"It was all her fault!"

"She was a real looker, though!" The three men spoke at once, drawing Hazel's eyebrow up. A woman got the better of three pirates?

"We had just finished raiding a merchant ship…" The man with a sort of flattened afro started. "We spotted a boat not far from us, and there was a woman laying inside!"

"She seemed helpless!" The last man, the one with facial hair, continued. "She was asking us for some water and bread; she looked like she was about to keel over!"

"She offered us her treasure chest of gold," Jolly Roger Hat continued the story. They were good at picking up the narrative, Hazel would give them that. "And we jumped to her ship to see what was inside it, only...she-she snuck onto our ship while we were distracted and started sailing away!" Hazel would admit she was a bit impressed at the mystery woman's plan, but at the same time seeing these three in front of her...it couldn't have been all that difficult.

"The chest didn't even have any treasure in it!" Flat Afro cried.

"And then, almost as if she were a sea witch who called the storm herself, we were capsized by a sudden downfall!" Facial Hair finished. "And that's the whole sad story! Just awful, ain't it?!"

"Amazing. She used the weather to her own advantage. She must really know the seas…" Zoro wondered. Hazel nodded along, impressed by the story. "She'd make a great navigator…"

"Indeed, though I'm a bit wary about asking her…" Hazel added, considering she was already a proven trickster.

"We think she'll make a great corpse!"

"What'll we do about the treasure we lost?!"

"If we return empty-handed, Buggy will be furious!" Hazel rubbed the space between her eyes to try and stem off the headache brewing at their shouting.

"Who's this Buggy guy, anyway?" Zoro asked, causing Hazel to groan slightly. She wanted the information, but she also wanted silence.

"Only the most ferocious pirate in these parts!" Jolly Roger Hat explained. "Haven't you heard of Buggy the Clown? He ate the fruit of the devil!" Hazel raised an eyebrow at that.

"...The fruit of the devil?" Zoro questioned. Conversation, thankfully, fell into a lull after that, everyone focused on getting to their destination. Hazel kept gray eyes on the horizon, ready to go the second they spotted land.

* * *

"This is it, Master Zoro!" The men said, once again ignoring Hazel's involvement. At this point she just rolled her eyes; no good getting worked up over such idiots.

"It looks like a ghost town. Where is everyone?" Zoro inquired. Now that Hazel thought about it, it _was_ really quiet here. Normally a port town like this would be bustling with at least _some_ activity.

"Well you see, sir...we've taken over this town." Facial Hair explained while the other two muttered about their captain, this "Buggy" character.

"C'mon, take us to your captain," Zoro interrupted, startling the men a bit. "Maybe he knows where Luffy is."

"Let's hope so, I haven't seen that bird in ages…" Hazel muttered, chewing her bottom lip.

"I'm sure that idiot is ok," Zoro whispered. "He survived getting shot at, I'm sure he can survive almost getting eaten." Hazel furrowed her brows.

"Those aren't exactly comparable," she pouted. "I just hope he wasn't dropped in the ocean…" She trailed off, and Zoro said nothing, so she let the conversation go as they were led through the empty town.

The walk was mostly silent, until all of a sudden an explosion ripped through the buildings the next block over, sending bits of wood and debris everywhere.

"What the hell?!" Hazel cried, shielding herself. Not wasting any time, she and Zoro took off running in the direction the explosion had come from. By the time they reached the roof (of a bar, from what Hazel could tell at first glance), her lungs burned in her chest, but when her eyes landed on the situation at hand, she found them easy to ignore.

Luffy was in a small, thick cage, his arms bound to his body by rope. A cannon was pointed directly at him, and a young girl with bright orange hair had her hands around the fuse, a circus of pirates ready to descend upon her with swords. Literally a circus, if their costumes were anything to go by. Luffy was screaming for the girl to look out, but just from looking Hazel could tell she'd never move out of the way in time.

Hazel and Zoro rushed in, Zoro holding back most of the pirates about to attack the girl without even unsheathing his swords. Hazel landed two consecutive kicks on a pair of stragglers, hitting them both in the throat and knocking them to the ground. Her blood was singing at the prospect of finally getting a fight, and she braced herself for more, but none came at the moment.

"How many pirates does it take to deal with one girl?" Zoro quipped, mocking the circus they'd run across.

"Zoro! Hazel!"

"Luffy!" Hazel yelled, pulled out of "fight mode" and running over to where he was caged. "Are you alright?"

"You hurt?" Zoro asked the young woman at the same time.

"No, I'm ok…"

"_Phew_! I'm glad you found me! Now get me outta here!" Luffy yelled.

"Always goofin' around…" Zoro said casually, resting his sword on his shoulder while Hazel inspected the cage. "First you fly off with some bird, and now you're playing in some cage...idiot!"

"Luffy, what the hell happened?!" He didn't answer her, distracted by the circus muttering about the "Pirate Hunter".

"The crewmate he was talking about…" the orange-haired girl muttered in disbelief. "That was Zoro the Pirate Hunter? What's going on here?"

"And you are?" Hazel asked, interrupting her thoughts. The girl let out a small squeak, but was saved from answering by another's voice.

"So you're Roronoa Zoro, eh?" The man said, sizing up her crewmate. Hazel suddenly understood the whole circus theme; this _had_ to be Buggy the Clown. He was dressed in an orange captain's coat, with a red and white striped shirt underneath. But what really garnered attention were his large red nose, and face paint under his bright blue hair and orange captain's hat. "You must have come to capture me!"

"I gave up pirate hunting. I have no interest in you."

"Well, I am interested in you," Buggy said as he twirled a knife between his fingers. "Killing you will be a nice feather in my cap."

"Back off before I pluck all your feathers."

"Is now really the time for banter?" Hazel called casually, still not finding a way to free Luffy from his cage. "Jeez, Luff, what did you get yourself into this time?"

"A cage!" Hazel facepalmed.

"Get 'im, Cap'n Buggy! Cut 'im to pieces!"

"Give me all you've got, Pirate Hunter, 'cause I'm about to get a look at your blood!" Buggy yelled, gearing up to slash at Zoro.

"You asked for it!" The swordsman drew all three swords, placing the white one between his teeth; but when he slashed at the clown, the man split apart like you'd expect, except…

"Hey! That was too easy!" Luffy yelled.

"No way…" the mystery woman whispered. Buggy's men just began to chuckle, and Hazel got the distinct feeling they were about to become the butt of some joke they weren't in on. Buggy's sliced body fell to the floor, but his men just continued to laugh amongst themselves.

"Hmph!" Zoro huffed. "That was almost disappointing…"

"Hey, Zoro!" Luffy called. "Help get me outta here!"

"I dunno if he'll be able to help, Luff…"

"She's right, we can't open this without a key. The bars are too thick for me to cut through," Zoro explained. Hazel stood up to look around for a key as the circus began laughing in full. "Very funny," Zoro started, focusing on the laughing men. "Now hand over the keys to this cage before I get cranky."

"Those guys are kinda creepy." Hazel was about to nod, when she caught movement from the corner of her eye.

"Zoro! Watch out!"

She was too late, though, as one of Buggy's severed hands went flying into the swordsman's torso, holding a sharp dagger. The man fell to his knees, blood spurting from his mouth. He hadn't even been able to draw his sword in time to block it.

"Zoro?!"

"What the-! That hand-!"

"What's going on…?!" Zoro ground out, the dagger leaving his body as he tried to stand up.

Hazel made to run over to him, but he sent her a look that said to stay away. Fair enough, she didn't have a weapon to counter; but she readied herself anyway, just in case. "Watch out for the floating hand!" She called, not actually being as sarcastic as she sounded. Zoro just clutched his side, eyes wide as he tried to figure out what was going on.

"The Chop-Chop fruit…" Came a familiar voice, and looking behind Zoro, Hazel saw what should be a rather gruesome sight. Severed parts floating in the air, Buggy the Clown was talking and moving as if Zoro's swords had never touched him. "That's the devil fruit I ate!" He yelled as his pieces formed back together. "You can slice and dice me, but you can't kill me! I'm a chop-chop man!"

"His body is back together again!" The other woman yelled. "I thought the stories about devil fruits were just a myth!"

"Chop-chop man?" Luffy said. "That guy's a freak!"

"You're not one to talk, rubber-man!" Hazel shouted behind her.

"Roronoa Zoro! You never had a chance!" Buggy continued his banter, ignoring the shock of his enemies. "Looks like I missed your vitals...but you still took a serious wound!" Shouts from the circus began to ring out.

"Captain Buggy! You're the greatest!"

"Finish him! Finish him!"

"STABBING SOMEONE IN THE BACK...THAT'S FIGHTING DIRTY! YOU GOT THAT, BIG NOSE?!"

The entire circus froze, faces frozen in fear. The orange-haired girl even turned back, fear apparent on her face as she whispered, "You idiot! That's the one thing you never-!"

"YOU DARE CALL ME BIG NOSE?!" Buggy yelled, falling apart where he'd been sliced earlier. His arm went flying, still clutching the dagger that stabbed Zoro, straight into Luffy's cage. Hazel had been too far away to stop it, and her heart nearly stopped as she heard Zoro yell his name.

"L-Luffy?!" But when the rubber-man looked up, he held the dagger between his grinning teeth.

"I swear...I'm gonna kick your ass!" Hazel let out the breath she didn't realize she'd been holding, and carefully made her way over to Zoro to help stand him up.

"Heheh, kick my ass?" Buggy taunted, before bursting into a fit of laughter. "HAHAHA! Kick my ass?! Don't make me laugh! You four are about to die flashily!" He continued laughing as Hazel leaned Zoro against her shoulder, buckling against his weight for a second before steadying him on his feet.

"You're a lot heavier than Luffy…" She muttered, giving a small smile at the weak glare he sent her.

"HAHAHA!" Luffy laughed back at the clown. "No way! I'm not gonna die!"

"And just how do you intend to beat me now? Ain't that a laugh boys?!" He and his circus continued their loud laughter.

"ZORO! HAZEL! RUN!" Luffy yelled suddenly. The two just looked at him, confused.

"What?! I'm not going anywhere! We're trying to save you! They'll kill you the moment we go!" The woman yelled in shock.

Hazel was about to agree with her, until she noticed the grin on Luffy's face. Tilting her head in his direction as subtly as she could, Hazel smiled when she saw understanding cross Zoro's face. "Oh...gotcha…" He grinned, and the two took off running towards the cannon, holding off Buggy's wayward hand with Zoro's swords. A couple times, Hazel managed to punch the hand away before it reached him, her small fist managing to avoid the sharp dagger so long as she aimed right.

"Roronoa Zoro! You won't get away that easily! Chop Chop Cannon!" Suddenly both arms came at once, each brandishing weapons, but Hazel kicked them both away while Zoro held them off, giving her a perfect opening.

"Ahahaha! Zoro and his woman are running away!" Hazel grit her teeth at the phrase.

"They won't escape Captain Buggy!"

They finally reached the cannon, Zoro getting underneath it to push from one side, while Hazel pushed from the other. With combined strength, they were able to flip the cannon completely, even with Zoro's injury. Seeing the cannon pointed their way, the Pirate Circus began to flip out.

"Ahh! The big cannon's pointed at us!"

"YEAH! And it's loaded with one of my Buggy Balls!" Buggy yelled, eyes wide with fear.

"Yeah!" Luffy yelled from inside his cage.

"Light this thing!" Zoro yelled to the other woman, who after startling for a moment, quickly got to fulfilling his request.

"NO!"

"LOOK OUT!"

The rooftop burst in a shower of rubble as the cannon went off, cutting off the yells of the circus, but leaving the other four intact.

"Now's our chance!" Zoro said, still clutching his side. "Who're you, anyway?"

"I'm...a thief…" The orange-haired girl seemed reluctant to share.

"Actually!" Luffy started. "She's our new navigator!" Apparently, Miss Thief didn't agree.

"What are you talking about?! Are you crazy?!" She yelled. "And shouldn't you be trying to get out of that cage?"

"She has a point, Luff…" Hazel spoke up. "We also may wanna get away from here before discussing new additions to the crew."

"Oh yeah, maybe you're right…"

"I'm not a 'new addition'!"

"No problem," Zoro grinned, not minding the blood falling from his mouth. "You just stay in the cage." Hazel raised an eyebrow.

"I suppose sans key there's not much else he can do…"

"You're not going anywhere!" Came suddenly from the cloud of dust behind them. Buggy stood wiping his face, scuffed from the explosion but otherwise intact.

"Zoro, don't do this! Your guts'll squirt out!" Luffy warned. Zoro grunted, wrapping his bicep around the bars of the cage.

"Then I'll just shove 'em back in!"

"How can you do this?!" Miss Thief shouted in concern.

"I do things my own way!" Zoro finished lifting the cage onto his shoulder, the wound in his side gushing more blood as he did so. "So don't give me any lip about it!"

Hazel just shook her head, grabbing the two not currently in a cage by the sleeves and urging them to run while they still could. They ran down a few rooftops, settling between two gables as they heard the circus continuing to chase after them. Zoro finally dropped the cage, clutching his side as he sat down.

"Damn it!" Luffy yelled. "If only I could get out of this cage!"

"We're in a...fine mess…" Zoro panted, worn out from the run and his injury. "Now we gotta finish what we started."

"Here, lemme look at that," Hazel said, gesturing to his side. She held a roll of bandages in her hands, having had the foresight to bring them along this time. It wouldn't be perfect, she was no doctor after all, but she could at least help stem some of the bleeding.

After a moment's contemplation, Zoro maneuvered so she could have a better angle, raising his shirt and lowering his haramaki just enough for her to see the wound. She began wrapping the bandages around him as best she could, trying not to go too tight, but it was a tad awkward with the position they were in. Zoro wasn't being much help either; in fact, he seemed to be thoroughly ignoring her as she worked. When she finished she sat back a bit, admiring her work before declaring, "All done! Now your guts aren't in danger of falling out." He just grunted in thanks, and readjusted his clothing, settling back against the roof for a moment. "We need to get off this roof and get somewhere safe!" She said, wishing she could give Zoro more time to rest; but if they stayed here, they were asking for trouble, and they needed to find a way to free Luffy.

Zoro nodded, taking a deep breath to steady himself before raising the cage once again. "Think it'll hurt if I throw him?" He asked, eyeing the distance. Hazel shrugged, ignoring Luffy's whine at the prospect.

"He's been through worse…" She reasoned.

"Hey, guys! Don't throw me-!" **BANG** Luffy's cage hit the ground, and sure enough, the rubber boy was perfectly intact, if a little shaken. "Woah! I bounced all around this thing!" The other two climbed down, rather slowly on Zoro's part, and when they reached the ground Hazel picked up the other end of the cage, ignoring his protests.

"Oi! I got it!"

"Look," she started, sticking her hand on her hip. "I may have patched you up, but you're in no position to be lifting this much weight on your own! I'm helping, get over it! Now, let's move out men!" Zoro just shook his head at the bossy woman, picking up the front end of the cage and leading their group down the street.

"We should be far enough away from that tavern," Zoro said after they'd been walking for a short time. "They probably won't catch up to us too soon...We got away...for now…" He was beginning to pant again, losing his breath. Hazel furrowed her brows as she stared at his wound, hoping the bandages would hold up. "What are we gonna do about this cage?"

"I can't do anything stuck inside this thing!" Luffy yelled between trying to gnaw through the bars.

"If only we had found that damn key…" Hazel growled. Suddenly, Zoro collapsed, causing Hazel to lurch when his side of the cage fell.

"Zoro!" She set Luffy down, running over to inspect the swordsman.

"It's no use...lost too much blood…" Sure enough, when Hazel checked the bandages she could see them already unraveling, red pooling underneath. "Got to...rest…"

"Hey, uh-uh, wake up, Tiger!" She urged, shaking him slightly. He groaned at the movement, but opened his eyes, only to be met with a white, furry face.

"Huh?! What's with you, dog?" Zoro yelled, feeling much more awake now and sitting up.

"Dog?" Luffy asked. "Hey, a dog!"

"...puppy…" Hazel said quietly, resisting the urge to scratch its ears.

They had stopped outside a pet food store, and the dog was at a standstill outside the doors. Luffy continued to stare at the dog, but it remained unmoving. "Is it real? It's not moving…"

"Who cares…" Zoro grumbled, situating himself against a column. "It's his business whether he moves or not. Our business is to get you out of there." Hazel sat down beside him, taking the opportunity to rest her muscles. Who would've ever thought that iron cages would be so heavy?

"Maybe it's dead," Luffy said, poking the poor dog in both eyes. It was like flipping a switch, and instantly the dog chomped onto Luffy's face. "YOW! Dumb dog!" He bat it away, but the dog only latched onto his rubber hand. "Lemme go! Lemme go!"

"Luffy, stop playing around!"

"There, there, Mr. Puppy, he's just an idiot, please let him go!" Hazel tried soothing, rubbing the top of his head gently until he was pacified enough to let Luffy go. Both men fell to their backs, muttering about their respective problems, and Hazel just sat back scritching the dog's ears, his tail wagging despite the angry look still on his face.

"Look at you three," Came suddenly from ahead of them. Looking up, they saw Miss Thief standing there, looking at them pityingly. "I don't mean to criticize, but is the middle of the street really the best hiding place you could come up with?"

"Hey, it's our navigator!" The three yelled, causing the orange-haired girl to shout.

"I never agreed to that!" She took a breath. "I just wanted to thank you for saving me…"

"Thank us?" She threw something to the ground. "The key! You stole the key to the cage!" Miss Thief just huffed.

"Yeah sure, I got the stupid key, but I left the map and all the treasure." She seemed to be pouting.

"This is great! I never thought I'd get out of here!"

"Then the rescue...was a success after all…"

"If it's any consolation, Miss Thief, now that we can free Luffy, we could always make an effort to help you with said treasure…" The girl's eyes sparkled at that, and Hazel couldn't help but laugh. That is, until the dog decided the key looked like a nice, tasty treat.

"...!"

"COUGH IT UP!" Luffy shouted, choking and shaking the poor animal. "THAT'S NOT FOOD! GIMME THAT KEY!"

"Luffy! Choking him won't help!"

"Dumb dog!"

"Dern whippersnappers! Don't you pick on poor ol' Chouchou!" The group looked up to see an old man yelling at them from a little ways down the street. He was short-statured, with a gray mullet and glasses, and wearing a ramshackle, brown suit of armor with a spear.

"Chouchou?" Luffy asked from between the dog's teeth.

"Who're you, old timer?" Zoro asked.

"Who am I? I'm the mayor of this town, that's who!"

"The mayor?" Hazel questioned. "So there are still people in town?"

The old man was about to answer, but just then Zoro fell over, passed out completely this time. "Injured, eh? Ahh, here...pick him up and follow me!" He said, and Hazel did as she was told. Kneeling so she could pull him onto her back, she found herself struggling to stand back up; this guy was _much_ heavier than Luffy. Gritting her teeth and groaning through the effort, she finally managed to stand up fully, though wobbled and nearly fell back over before righting herself. Luckily, the mayor didn't lead her very far; just into a house about a street over. Hazel quickly deposited the man on the bed, immediately stretching out her back muscles after doing so with a _pop_. Once she'd been up, it hadn't been so bad; but she was still glad to be rid of the extra weight for now.

The mayor insisted on bandaging Zoro's wound, and as he seemed more experienced with it, she let him, choosing to wait in the living room while he worked. The room was decently furnished, though beginning to accumulate dust after being unused for what she assumed was a while. Plates were still situated at the dining table, indicating the mayor had left in a hurry. Things were beginning to click into place.

"Alright, that's the best I can do fer now!" The mayor said, entering back into the room. "He woke up fer a minute, there, but he insisted on just sleeping it off."

"Do you mind if I wait for him here, then? I don't trust him to not immediately overdo it after he wakes up…" Hazel deadpanned, already used to that behavior thanks to a certain rubber brother of hers. Come to think of it, Ace had been kinda like that too when they were kids…

"That's probably a good idea. The kid needs a doctor, but I won't force it on him." Hazel nodded along. The mayor left after that, and Hazel settled into one of the dining chairs. She couldn't see Luffy or Miss Thief from here, but she could see the back of the pet food store, and she figured if anything happened, she'd at least be able to hear Luffy.

She'd nearly started dozing in her chair when she heard it - a loud roar. "What the hell…?" She muttered, trying to get a better look out the window. She still couldn't see, but all she kept hearing was the weird roaring. "Well...I don't hear any screams yet…" But still she bit her lip in worry. That was her baby brother out there, stuck in a cage and unable to fight since Chouchou swallowed the key, but she didn't know _anything_ about the situation! As much as she may enjoy kicking ass, she didn't wanna run in there half-cocked. She heard another roar, and what sounded like loud crunching.

Hazel grabbed the doorknob, ready to run outside when she finally heard "Hooray! I'm free!"

"Oh, thank goodness…" She'd spoken too soon, however, as suddenly one of the houses across the street caved in the middle, and spat Luffy out onto the street outside her window.

"Wow! What an impact!" The boy yelled, sounding more impressed than hurt. "He knocked me through that house and into the next street! But at least I'm out of that cage!"

"Luffy! Are you alright?!" Hazel yelled through the open door.

"Oh! Hazel! There you are! I'm ok, and now I'm gonna show all of these clowns…" He grinned, raising his fist. "And make that thief, Nami, our navigator!"

"Need any help?" Hazel asked, his grin infectious.

"Nah! You stay here and wait for Zoro! This won't take me long!"

"Ahhh!" Came a scream, drawing the siblings' attention. "You're still alive?!" The mayor shouted.

"How the hell did you manage to survive?!" Miss Thief - Nami, had Luffy said? - screamed, eyes wide and accusatory.

"Why can't I be alive?" He asked, not seeing the issue.

"You smashed through a house, but you seem to be perfectly fine, which is too weird!" Ahh, she didn't know.

"I don't care if it's weird…"

"What is your purpose here?" The mayor asked, halting the argument. "Why are you fighting those pirates?"

Luffy grinned his trademark grin, "I just chose my goal a moment ago! I'm getting the Grand Line map and a navigator!" Hazel leaned against the doorframe, sharing his enthusiasm. She only hoped said navigator warmed up to them...Zoro hadn't wanted to join either, after all, but look at him now!

"Hey, Hazel!" Luffy said suddenly, causing her smile to drop in question. "That fur cap guy seems to be looking for Zoro! Keep an eye out!"

"You got it!" She nodded, giving him a thumbs up despite not knowing who "Fur Cap Guy" was.

"Where are you going, you idiot?! You're gonna get eaten by the lion!"

"Excuse me, lion?" Hazel asked, eyes widening. Was that the roaring she'd heard?

Conversation halted when they heard something...strange. It was like a low roar, different from the apparent "lion" from before, with some faint crackling. Hazel thought she could smell smoke, and looking up at the sky, her eyes widened further.

"Fire!" Hazel yelled, drawing everyone's attention to the pet food shop. It had been engulfed in flames, quickly spreading to the nearly collapsed house Luffy had shot through. They could hear faint barking from the other side, and so the three ran to check, leaving Hazel behind to continue babysitting.

The flames quickly died down, thankfully, and she could still hear some of the barking and some shouting, though she didn't know what was said. She kept watching the smoke rise from the remains, almost as if she were waiting for it to put itself back together; but when miraculously nothing happened, she sighed, and turned back inside the mayor's house.

* * *

She'd been sitting on the edge of the bed when the explosion happened. She'd heard it break through the roof, and in the split second that followed, ripped Zoro from the bed and out of the cannon's direct reach. The movement had woken him up, and as the building's debris fell around them they both did their best to shield each other. They were lucky; both had managed to avoid major injury from the blast.

"Hey! Zoro! Hazel! Are you alive?!" Came Luffy's desperate cry. Hazel groaned from under Zoro's torso, holding her head as she shook herself clear from the blast. She was physically unhurt, but it had disoriented her a bit. Zoro similarly was holding his head, rubbing his eyes clear of both dust and sleep.

"Man, that's one hell of an alarm clock!" Hazel let out a short bark of laughter.

"That's one way to put it…" She joked, shakily.

"You're alive!" As the dust cleared, Hazel could see the relief plain on her brother's face, and felt similar feelings for herself.

"How could anyone live through that?" Nami asked.

"To be fair," Hazel started, voice stronger now the adrenaline was wearing off. "I'm pretty sure _he_ took the brunt of it." She indicated towards Zoro. "How's your head?"

"It's fine…" He grumbled, still rubbing at it.

"That tears it!"

"Mayor!"

"I can't take anymore! I won't lose a second town to those sea rats! These pirates show up, think they can do as they please, but I won't let 'em wreck 40 years of hard work! I'm the mayor! I won't take this sitting down! It's time to fight!" The mayor quickly stood up, immediately beginning to walk towards where they'd last seen the pirate circus, but Nami reached out her hand and grabbed him.

"Mayor wait, please!"

"Let me go, Girlie!"

"Getting yourself killed won't accomplish anything! You're being reckless!"

Suddenly, the mayor whirled on the girl, surprising her. He had tears gushing from his eyes, a desperate look upon his face, "I know I'm being reckless!" He turned back around. "Buggy the Clown! Prepare to face the mayor!" And he took off full speed towards the town.

"The mayor...he was crying…" Nami muttered.

"It didn't look that way to me!" Luffy grinned.

"Things are finally gonna get fun!" Zoro chimed in, finally feeling better after the explosion.

"Hahaha! Yeah!" Hazel just shook her head, smile on her face.

"This is no laughing matter!" Nami scolded, turning her gaze on all three of them.

"Don't worry, I like that old man!" Luffy tried to reassure her. "I won't let him get killed!"

Nami still had her doubts, however. "How can you just stand there laughing?! What do you get out of this, anyway?!"

"We're headed for the Grand Line!" Luffy said, getting serious. "We'll steal that map back, and then we can go there together! Join up with us!" He said, holding his hand out for the girl. "You want the map and all that treasure, right?" Nami just stared at him, and his hand, for a moment.

"I won't become a pirate!" She slapped his hand away, though not altogether unkindly. "Let's just say we'll join forces...work together for a common goal!" Hazel raised an eyebrow, feeling unsure. Something about this girl seemed...off to her, but she couldn't put her finger on what. She only hoped this "partnership" wouldn't turn out to bite them in the ass later.

"Well then, let's get going!" Hazel stood up, putting the issue on the back-burner in her mind for now.

"You're coming too?!" Nami shrieked when Zoro stood as well. "What about your injuries?!"

"They got better." He said simply, reaching for the bandana wrapped around his bicep.

"That's impossible!"

"I'm more worried about my reputation than my guts right now. I've got a score to settle!" He finished tying the bandana around his head and grinned. "Let's do it." Hazel found her grin growing as she cracked her knuckles.

"I can't wait!" Luffy yelled, doing the same.

"You three are crazy!" Nami barked, but she followed behind them all the same.

* * *

The scene the group came upon was not pretty. Buggy appeared to have the mayor by the throat in a vice grip, dangling him in the air as he shouted through the pain.

"I WON'T LET YOU WRECK THIS TOWN! COME DOWN AND FIGHT ME!"

That was the only cue Luffy needed, and so he ran forward and pried Buggy's severed hand off the mayor's throat, setting the man to the ground as gently as Luffy was capable of.

"The kid in the straw hat?!" Buggy yelled from his perch on the rooftop.

"I'm back!" Luffy called, taunting grin on his face. "Told you I'd kick your ass!"

"I don't believe it! You all must enjoy pain...but this time, you won't escape me!"

"Have fun fighting, you three…" Nami called. "I'm just here for the map and the treasure!"

"Whatever…" Zoro growled, but Hazel squinted at the woman.

"I think I'll leave the fighting here to these boys," She said, not completely telling the truth. She'd been itching for a fight, but this was more important. "I'll accompany you, Nami. Just to make sure you don't run into any trouble…" She smiled at the younger girl.

"O-of course! A bodyguard could be a good asset in this case!" In truth, Hazel wasn't sure she trusted Nami yet. She knew the boys both did, that much was obvious, but she couldn't be sure Nami wouldn't decide to make off with both the map and the treasure while the rest of them were distracted. That wouldn't make for a very fair "partnership"...

And in the event Nami _was_ trustworthy, then it couldn't hurt to offer her some extra protection. Hazel figured the girl could take care of herself, she was stealing from pirates after all, but there was safety in numbers.

"You young whippersnappers…" Came the mayor's voice, gasping a wheezing from Buggy choking him. "You're outsiders...not your fight…It's my town and I'll protect it!" He suddenly shouted, catching his breath. "So don't you interfere!"

That's when Luffy slammed his head against a wall.

"Mayor?!" Nami shouted.

"Oof...a little hard there, wasn't it, Luff?" Hazel grimaced, watching as the old man fell to the ground unconscious.

"Argh! You-! Whose side are you on?! Why'd you do that to the mayor?!" Nami seethed, turning her glare to both Luffy, who'd done the deed, and Hazel, who was nonchalantly turning the man over with her foot so he lay on his back. Luffy turned and grinned at the girl.

"He was in the way!"

"Good thinking," Zoro commented, wholly unconcerned with his captain's actions. "He would've gotten himself killed; he'll be safer unconscious."

"YOU'RE TOO RECKLESS!" Nami screamed at the pirates, but they paid her no mind. Hazel was already pretty used to her yelling. Luffy turned back to the clown, ignoring Nami once again to face his opponent.

"HEY YOU! BIG NOSE!" Everyone in the vicinity was a collection of gasps and grimaces, and Hazel felt herself scrunching her face as she groaned.

"KILL HIM FLASHILY!" Buggy shouted from the rooftop. "GIVE HIM THE BUGGY BALL!"

The cannon was already loaded, shooting the explosive cannonball right at the rubber-man. Luffy continued to stand there, grinning menacingly at the clown he'd just insulted.

"You idiot! Don't you know when to shut up?!"

"Luffy! Get out of the way! You're gonna get hit!"

"Dammit Luffy! Stop being dramatic and do something!" His grin just widened.

"That measly cannonball's not gonna work on me!" He took a deep breath. "Gum Gum...Balloon!" Suddenly, he puffed up like a balloon, taking the cannonball directly in the stomach, but not taking any damage from it. The pirates on the roof were freaking out, while Hazel just huffed behind him, annoyed.

"I really wish you'd stop waiting until the last minute for these things…"

Luffy just ignored her as he bounced the cannonball back to the roof, much to the further surprise of the Buggy Pirates.

"You could've at least told us what you were planning…" Zoro grumbled, hiding his face in his hand. "Made me worry for nothing…"

"You'd think I'd be used to it by now…" Hazel grumbled next to him, pouting at her brother's smiling face.

"That evens the odds a bit! Let's get 'em!"

"What are you?!" Nami shouted from where she knelt on the ground. Before anyone could answer her, the building crashed to the ground in a pile of rubble, crushing the bodies of the pirates under its once-sturdy beams. The four stared at the wreckage for a moment before Nami continued, drawing their attention once again. "Wow, I thought there was something strange about you...I mean, you _did_ pile drive a lion! What kind of human being could do that? How can you inflate yourself like a balloon?!" She demanded.

Luffy smiled, speaking as if it was the simplest thing in the world. Maybe to him it was. "That was the Gum Gum...Balloon!"

"BUT HOW DO YOU DO IT?!"

That's when they heard the cracking of the debris in front of them. Turning towards the noise, the group were surprised to find some of the pirate circus standing back up. "You've got some nerve…" Buggy said menacingly from behind the bodies of his fallen crew.

"He's using his men as shields…" Nami gasped. Hazel glared in his direction. How low do you have to be to use your own men as human shields?

"Cap'n, this is the worst disgrace we've suffered since you formed our crew…" An odd looking man with a weird side-shave said from behind a large - green?! - lion. Though, Hazel supposed they were all rather odd looking…

"I'm so mad, I can't even speak…" Buggy said, looking down at the body below his foot. Glancing behind the two, Hazel saw another man standing up. He was even weirder looking than the other two, with fur-like hair all over his head, and was that his shirt or more hair?

"Where am I? What the hell happened?!" The man asked, winded from the fall.

"Mohji, you're still alive?"

"Cabaji! What are you doing to Richie?!" The furry man, Mohji, yelled.

"The kitty?" Side-Shave asked, unconcerned by his crewmate's glare. "I was using him as a shield. Didn't wanna soil my raiment." He dropped the lion to the ground, and Mohji ran to check if he was ok. He turned to yell at the other man, but he stopped when his eyes caught sight of Luffy and the others.

"It's the kid in the straw hat!" He gasped. "Cap'n Buggy! Watch out for him! He's got special powers from eating the devil fruit - just like you! He's a rubber-man!"

"Rubber-man?!" Nami gasped, turning to Luffy. He and Hazel each stretched one of his cheeks out.

"Yep, see?" They said in unison.

"WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME?!" Buggy yelled suddenly, tossing his furry crewmember and drawing their attention away from Luffy's stretchy face.

"I tried to!" Mohji yelled as he soared through the air towards Luffy. "Outta my way!"

"Outta _my_ way, fuzzy!" Luffy reared his foot back, landing a kick to Mohji's cheek and sending him far behind them. Nami had to jump out of the way, nearly knocking into Hazel as she did so. "The battle begins!"

"Buggy's second mate, Cabaji the Acrobat!" Side-Shave came racing towards them on a unicycle, sword drawn at his side. "I'll cut 'em to mincemeat, Cap'n!" He was stopped from impaling Luffy by Zoro jumping in the way, blocking the attack with his own weapon.

"If it's a sword duel you want, I'm your man!"

"Roronoa Zoro, as one swordsman to another, it will be an honor to cut you down."

"Hey, Zoro…" Hazel started, glancing at his wound. She didn't want to say anything out loud and draw attention to it, but she doubted he was up to a real fight right now. They'd used the last of the bandages she'd brought at the mayor's house too, so if he got worse right now, things could get dicey.

"Zoro, maybe you should rest." Luffy said, having noticed too. "Let me handle him." But Cabaji was moving before Zoro could acknowledge either of them.

"'The Breath of Death'!" He yelled, blowing fire in Zoro's face. As the swordsman backed up from the attack, his opponent's foot came crashing into him, connecting perfectly with his wound.

"Dammit!" Hazel yelled as Zoro screamed, falling to his back in agony. Blood pooled behind the bandages, and Hazel grit her teeth.

"Hmm...I didn't think I kicked you that hard…"

"That's dirty! You're aiming for his injuries!" Nami scolded, though it fell on deaf ears.

"I call my next circus trick…'Murder at the Steam Bath'!" Cabaji yelled, kicking up dust with his sword.

"What kind of circus trick is that?!" Zoro huffed from the ground. "You're just kicking up dust!" He stopped talking to cross his swords, blocking the other swordsman's attack just in time. Unfortunately, this left his side wide open.

Zoro shouted again as he fell back a ways from his opponent, holding his wound, blood pooling around his fingers through the bandages. Hazel watched in horror as he slumped to the ground, fighting every urge to jump in and pummel the guy. Zoro would hate her if she interfered, she already knew that even if they hadn't known each other long...maybe she could steal the guy's unicycle out from under him?

"He did it again!" Nami yelled from beside her. Hazel just continued to stare wide-eyed at the scene, biting her cheek to keep herself focused.

"What kind of man screams like a woman?" Cabaji taunted their swordsman.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?!" Hazel yelled, unable to help it. Damn sexist pirates…

"Your matey's odd talents caused us quite a bit of trouble." Cabaji continued, ignoring her, and standing up on his unicycle. Now Hazel was really itching to knock it over. "So you're the big, scary 'Pirate Hunter'. Well, this'll teach you to mess with Cap'n Buggy's crew." Zoro just continued to huff on the ground, struggling to pull himself back up.

"Zoro's hurt bad! How's he supposed to fight?!" Nami complained, turning to Luffy. "How can you just stand there and watch your friend get killed?!" But Luffy just stood there, appearing calm as a rock. Seeing she was getting nowhere with him, Nami turned to his sister. "What about you?! One of you has to do something!"

"Nami, please…" was all Hazel could get out before the opposing swordsman interrupted.

"Roronoa Zoro!" Cabaji yelled, readying to attack. "Prepare to be well done!"

Zoro stood up quick and sudden, knocking the other man right off of his unicycle. Hazel let out a breath she didn't know she'd been holding. These kids were gonna give her gray hair before her next birthday...

"How…?" Nami gasped.

"Yeah!" Luffy cheered.

"Just know I've been wanting to do that for a while now!" Hazel called out to the grass-headed man, though he didn't acknowledge her. Fair enough.

"You're a very annoying person…" Zoro said to the acrobat. "I hope you enjoyed kicking my wound." Then, he struck at his own wound, slicing through the bandages and causing blood to spill out over his side.

Everyone grimaced, except Hazel, who shook her fist at the man and yelled, "WE DON'T HAVE UNLIMITED BANDAGES YOU FUCKING IDIOT!"

"Hooooph!" Zoro let out a breath, barely seeming affected otherwise. "My goal is to be the World's Greatest Swordsman…"

"What are you talking about...?" Cabaji asked, bewildered.

"Is that enough of a handicap for ya?" Zoro continued, placing his white-hilted katana in his mouth. "Now I'll show you some real swordplay."

"Wow! Zoro's cool!" Luffy cheered, while Hazel continued to grumble about the man.

"Hmph, so Roronoa Zoro...you want to make a fool out of me?"

"I'm getting faint just watching this…" Nami complained while Luffy cheered. Hazel could only nod, checking for gray hairs in her periphery. None yet.

"I can't lose, not even once, to anyone who calls himself a swordsman!" Zoro said, determined. The other man smirked, holding his sword in front of him and readying for the fight.

"So you injured yourself as insurance for your reputation...well, don't worry, your wounds are severe. They'll make an excellent excuse when you lose."

"It's the other way around!" Zoro yelled, his other two swords at his sides, facing away from him towards the ground. "If I lose to the likes of you when my wounds are only this light, then I may as well give up my dream right now."

"You scurvy dog!"

"Hey!" Nami spoke up suddenly, drawing Luffy and Hazel's attention. "That shack behind the ruins of the tavern…" the orange-haired girl pointed behind them. "That's where they keep their treasure, and Buggy's probably got the map of the Grand Line. I'll get their treasure and make my escape. I've got to do it now, while they're all knocked out…" Hazel raised an eyebrow. Did she forget she agreed to let Hazel come with? "Whether you guys win or lose this battle...I don't really care!" Yup, she must've.

"Hold on a minu-"

"But if you do get that map from Buggy…" Nami continued, ignoring Hazel's scowl. "Then- and only then- will I consider teaming up with you again. Good luck, you guys!" She grinned, running off down an alley.

"Wow, thanks!" Luffy said happily.

"Hey, Nami, wait! I'm supposed to go with you!" Hazel yelled, chasing off after the girl. She managed to keep pace with her, and didn't miss the small pout on the younger girl's face. "I realize you're probably used to working alone, but this is still a partnership, Miss Thief!"

"O-of course! I just figured since Buggy's men were knocked out, you would rather wait with Luffy! That's all!" Nami tried to play it off, but Hazel wasn't convinced, and she let it show on her face.

"You never know what can happen. I'd rather help keep you, and any treasure, safe. Those boys, stupid as they can be, can handle whatever that clown throws at them."

Nami stopped suddenly to hide behind a building, and though confused, Hazel stopped beside her. They were still close to the battle, though being on this side Hazel could no longer hear what was being said. She could hear Luffy and Buggy's voices though, and assumed they'd begun their fight. Had Zoro won his?

Hazel nearly slapped herself at the silly thought. What was she thinking, of course that idiot won. He'd better have, for all the trouble he was gonna be in when she patched him up again later.

Suddenly, one of the buildings next to them shattered as Luffy was thrown into it. He popped his upper body out of the rubble easily, hands in the air and holding his straw hat. Hazel watched him stand fully, placing the hat back on his head. "Damn," he said. "How am I supposed to whack you when you keep flying into pieces?"

"What a fight…" Nami whispered. "It's like I'm seeing things…"

"I promise, you're not," Hazel assured her. "We'd better keep moving before these losers wake up." She thought she could already see some of them moving, but when no one stood up she assumed her eyes were playing tricks on her. Just as well, as Nami remained rooted to the spot, eyes transfixed on Luffy.

"Chop Chop Cannon!" They heard Buggy yell, sending his hand at Luffy. It was holding three knives between the fingers, aimed right at his face. Luffy caught the hand at the last second, but it was no use when Buggy yelled, "Separate!"

The palm detached from the wrist, the knives nicking the edge of Luffy's hat as he dodged. He crashed back into the rubble, pausing for a second to inspect the cut along the brim

"Damn you!" Luffy yelled, glaring daggers at the clown. Hazel couldn't hear his response, but she assumed it was taunting. "That does it! You nicked my hat!" Luffy shouted, rage clear on his face. Buggy didn't seem to realize the gravity of his crime. "THIS IS MY TREASURE! NOBODY DAMAGES THIS HAT!"

Hazel flinched at the emotion in her brother's voice. He'd always been so protective over that hat, ever since he was given it 10 years ago…

"It's that important to you, eh?" Buggy asked, louder this time.

"That's right!"

Nami's hands covered Hazel's mouth in time to muffle her shout, having noticed the same thing she did but not wanting to give away their position. Buggy's hand, previously forgotten, was now rising above the rubble, flying with its knives straight at Luffy. He noticed as well, luckily, and got out of the way in time. But, his hat…

Hazel quickly covered her mouth to suppress her gasp; Luffy's straw hat sailed through the air, impaled by all three of Buggy's knives. The hand holding them sailed back to its master, and if it weren't for Nami holding her back, Hazel would've been running right after Luffy towards the damned clown.

"I promised to return that hat to Shanks!" Luffy yelled, voice cutting straight into her. Buggy said something in return, but he was back to his previous volume, and Hazel couldn't hear anything but the sounds of the fighting continued. That is, until Luffy shouted once again, "Don't put yourself on the same level as him!" Hazel took the opportunity to glance around the corner of the building, happy to see Luffy absolutely wailing on the man.

"Oh no! We got caught up watching the fight!" Nami said suddenly, drawing Hazel's attention back to her. "I have to steal the treasure and make my escape!"

"Ahem?"

"Uhh _we_ have to steal the treasure and make _our_ escape! Heh…"

"That's what I thought you said," Hazel said kindly, causing Nami to flinch.

* * *

"Here we are!" Nami whispered as she led the way into the cellar. The women had run down another side alley, to a dilapidated house with a boarded cellar door. Hazel stood back, letting the orange-haired girl enter first. The room was occupied, but only by one guard, and he seemed to be passed out drunk. Nothing to be too alarmed about. Nami made her way over to the door at the back of the room, readying her bo staff to break the lock. Hazel was just about to follow, when suddenly she felt a weight on her shoulders.

Whipping around with a gasp, the weight left her shoulders, only to settle across from her in the street. She supposed it _looked_ like a man, underneath the heavy face paint, and he was dressed head to toe in skintight spandex; a kaleidoscope of primary colors colliding in crazy shapes and patterns as they converged into tinkling little bells.

In short: he was an eyesore of a jester. And he was laughing at her.

The jester stood balanced on one jingling toe, posing for her, and giggling a bell-like laugh to match those on his clothes. Hazel braced herself, steadying her breathing, and chanced a glance behind her into the cellar. Nami was nowhere to be seen, and she assumed the girl was past the locked door by now and gathering the treasure. Good; Hazel could handle this better if she didn't have to worry about collateral damage.

"Who the hell are you, Jingly?!" She demanded, fists poised in front of her face. The jester only laughed louder.

"Why, Chester is my name,

You funny little girl,

Prepare for this jester,

To throw you for a whirl!"

_Great, he rhymes! _Hazel thought, as Chester the Jester launched himself at her. He was fast, very fast, and Hazel could barely keep her eyes on him to block his attack. All she could make out was a blur of color hurtling towards her, but right as she was about to strike out and hit it, the blur changed direction, practically disappearing before her eyes. If it weren't for the tiny tinkling of the bells, Hazel never would've known to look behind her.

She struck out with her right leg, nearly making contact; but the damn jester jumped over her attack, perching casually atop her leg as if it were the top of a wall. She jerked, surprised, and tried to shake him off. Chester landed easily, and jabbed at her with pointed fingers, taking advantage of her confusion.

His hit landed on her left pectoral muscle, instantly shooting pain through Hazel's entire arm. She let out a short scream, stumbling back as she held her shoulder with her other arm. She could barely feel her left arm; it was just a dangling, tingling, mass.

"What the hell was that?! What'd you do to my arm?!" The jester only giggled in that annoying way of his.

"To ask an opponent about his techniques...

'Tis indeed quite admirable.

Unfortunately for you, Girlie,

It's also _quite_ unanswerable!"

He launched again, but this time Hazel was more prepared. She kept her ears focused, trying to follow the tinkling of his clothing as he raced around her. If she tried to follow with her eyes, she'd fall for his game; he was trying to confuse her.

"Tch, if I could just land a hit on him…" She muttered under her breath, and the jester cackled in her ear. She stumbled back in fright, nearly tripping over her own feet, and Chester took his opportunity to jab her again, this time hitting beneath her right shoulder blade. "Fuck-!" Hazel gasped as her breath flew out of her. It felt as though she'd been stabbed in the lung, but she knew he'd only used his fingers. Before she could regain her breath, the rhyming fiend landed two more hits along her elbow and her wrist, immobilizing her right hand completely.

"Poor little blossom,

Say it ain't so!

I'm afraid, little blossom,

It's time for you to go!"

This time when Chester lunged, he aimed for her throat. Hazel's eyes widened and she ran to avoid it, ducking down a nearby alley away from the dank cellar. Her arms may feel useless right now, but he'd neglected to take out her legs. If she could just get a moment to catch her bearings, she could probably hit him easily! She just needed time to think!

"No no no, my dear,

No running away!

If you leave now,

We won't get to play!"

"Argh! I'm sick of 'playing'!" She shouted, turning on her heel to face him. He gave her a toothy grin beneath the one painted on his face as he lunged towards her once again. But this time, she was ready for him, and when she heard the bells veer next to her, she leapt. Her foot landed on his shoulder, much as he'd done to her earlier, and using his momentum against him, Hazel pushed the jester into the ground. Her own landing was a bit shaky, her arms still hurt too much for her to use them properly, but she'd hit him…"And your rhymes suck!"

Chester the Jester pushed himself up, no longer grinning as he wiped blood from his nose. He glared at her from beneath his pointed, jingling hat; Hazel could practically feel the daggers his eyes were shooting through her. "Heh…" He laughed, spitting blood onto the ground next to him. "You're gonna have to do better than that, Girlie."

All at once his demeanor changed, seeming to better match his clown-like persona as he gasped and covered his mouth at what he'd said. His eyes widened, distraught, as he looked Hazel's way; tears even glistened in his blue eyes. Hazel just glared at him, frustrated that someone so pathetic had basically been kicking the shit out of her.

"HEY! IF YOU'RE GONNA RHYME, DO IT ALL THE TIME!" She seethed, before copying his stance. "Dammit! Now I'm doing it too!" Good thing no one else was here to witness this!

Chester just laughed again, ignoring the woman's frustration as he stood up fully. He seemed mostly unaffected by Hazel's earlier kick, at least from a glance. Hazel took a better look; sure enough, his whole body was shaking. It was taking all the man's willpower to stand up right now.

Now Hazel understood her opponent perfectly. He relied on his speed to land precise hits, immobilizing his opponent before they could strike back; but he himself was weak, and only able to take a couple hits from a strong enough fighter. Luckily, Hazel had been taught by one of the strongest fighters in the world.

_If there's a God, don't tell Gramps I'm thanking him..._

Hazel took a sudden running start at Chester, startling the cackling man. Good, time to put _him _on the defensive!

"Ha! Run all you like,

You can't match my speed!

If you run at me, little blossom,

Your loss is guaranteed-huh?!"

He'd been ready to meet her head on, palms at the ready and aimed for her abdomen; but right when he was about to touch her, she jumped, avoiding it. Hazel leapt over him, reaching out despite the pain still surging through her arms, and grabbed the jester by the face. The momentum she'd built up propelled her through the rest of her jump, but it also brought his head to the street below them with a sickening _crack_! Hazel fell to her feet, still holding the man's face. When he didn't move again, she finally pulled back her shaky limbs, trying to shake the feeling back into them.

Hazel sat for a moment, pain finally subsiding and feeling returning to her arms. "I swear, if I ever hear another rhyme, I'm committing a _lot_ of crimes…" She jolted. "Fuck!"

* * *

"I win!" Came Luffy's shout as Hazel rejoined the group. Buggy was nowhere to be found, but Nami and Luffy stood near each other conversing, and from what Hazel could see, neither were hurt. Luffy's hat on the other hand…

With a heavy sigh, Hazel plopped on the ground next to Zoro, who miraculously was asleep. She kinda envied him; she was exhausted. Hazel sat rubbing her sore arms while Luffy and Nami continued their brief conversation, not in any rush to start moving again now the trouble was over.

"Oi! Hazel! There you are!" Luffy yelled, waving at her as he headed her way. She raised an arm in return.

"Hey, Luff. You kick his ass?" His answer was a wide grin and a nod, and Hazel smiled proudly at him. "Heh, good job."

"What about you? When I left the cellar, you were nowhere to be found! What happened?!" Nami asked, sounding genuinely concerned. Well, she hadn't taken the treasure and run, so that was a sign in the girl's favor.

"Creepy jester dude...nobody rhyme anytime soon!" Nami waited for more of an explanation, but that was all Hazel said, and all Luffy needed.

"_Shishishi_ I bet you kicked his ass easily!" Hazel couldn't help the bashful smile that spread across her face.

"You always think so highly of me," She said, sheepishly, but Luffy had already moved on.

"Hey, Zoro! Wake up!" He nudged the sleeping swordsman. "Let's get going!"

"Hm?" Zoro hummed, sitting up and taking in his surroundings. "Did you take care of things?"

"Yeah, and I got the map and the treasure." Zoro tried to stand up, but faltered as he strained his wound.

"It's no good. I don't think I can walk."

"I can't carry you this time, sorry. That fucker really did a number on my muscles," Hazel pouted, causing Zoro to raise a brow in her direction.

"Who did you fight?" He grunted.

"Creepy rhyming jester guy with really jabby fingers." Zoro just looked confused. "Yeah, don't ask…Point is, I can't move my upper body real well right now. Some rest should fix me up!"

"Jeez, with the way you guys all fight, it's no wonder you can't move! If you could, I wouldn't believe any of you were human!" Nami scolded them, hands on her hips.

"You didn't even see me fight though!" Hazel complained.

"Hey! Don't lump me in with them!" Luffy whined.

"You're even less human than they are!"

"Oh yeah!" Luffy said suddenly, turning away from the irate woman. "I'd better wake the mayor!" Hazel had completely forgotten about him. Whoops…

Before Luffy could get near the mayor, a voice called from down the road. A group of people brandishing various weapons stood staring at them, but they didn't seem hostile. Yet.

"We're the citizens of this town." One said, near the front. "Did the pirates mutiny or something? C'mon, you, talk!"

"The townspeople?" Nami questioned, a plan formulating in her mind. "That's a relief! Thought you might be more pirates! We'll tell you what happened, but it's a long story…"

"Hey! It's the mayor!" Someone yelled, cutting her off. The group ran past the pirates, rushing to check on their leader. "Mayor! Are you hurt?"

"What happened here?"

"It was those lousy pirates!"

"No it wasn't…" Luffy said casually. "I knocked the old man out!" Hazel facepalmed as the townspeople turned to glare at them.

"Luffy! They didn't have to know that!" Nami yelled at him.

"Well, you saw me."

"True! But I wasn't going to tell them!"

"Nami, meet Luffy…" Hazel muttered, but the girl didn't hear her over the villagers' shouts

"You did this to the mayor?!"

"It's intolerable!"

"Who are you? Pirates?"

"We're pirates!" Luffy answered simply, causing Nami to stumble back in shock. Zoro burst into laughter, clutching his side, and even Hazel had to grin and chuckle along, shaking her head.

"YOU IDIOT!" Nami screamed.

"We _are_ pirates!" Luffy answered. "Run!" Without another word, he threw Zoro over his shoulder along with a bag of treasure and ran off. Nami yanked Hazel up by her arm, causing a pained protest from the violet-haired woman, but soon they were following after the two, the shouts of the townspeople at their backs.

"Don't let them get away! They'll pay for attacking the mayor!"

"Why do you always have to complicate things?" Nami asked as they ran.

"These are good people!" Came Luffy's answer, but all it did was confuse the girl.

"So?!"

"They're all worked up…" Luffy explained. "Because they love their mayor! It wouldn't matter what we told them!" Suddenly, Luffy veered off down an alley, the others keeping close to his heels despite the abrupt change in direction. They heard the group follow them, but growls stopped their pursuers. Hazel chanced a glance behind her to see Chouchou blocking the townspeople's path.

"Chouchou!"

"That dog!"

No matter how much the villagers protested, the dog would not budge, allowing for the trio turned quartet to make a clean getaway to the docks. As they reached the outskirts of the town, they finally began to slow, transitioning into a brisk walk as they spotted two boats in the harbor.

"That was too close!" Nami sighed, relieved. "Chouchou really saved our necks! Why are we in this mess, anyway?"

"It's ok, we did what we needed to do, right?" Luffy asked, carrying Zoro at his side now. Said swordsman remained slumped at his captain's side, and Hazel grew concerned at his state once again. Had he passed out again? "Hey, is this your ship?" Luffy asked Nami, noticing the boat docked next to their little dinghy. "It's great!"

"I've seen better...I stole it from some stupid pirates!" That jogged Hazel's memory.

"Hey, wait a minute...pirates?"

"We've been waiting for you, Girlie!" Came a shout from Nami's boat. The three men Hazel and Zoro had come across so much earlier stood glaring at the girl. Nami stared at them, sweat running down her brow.

"Y-you guys…" She stuttered out. Hazel glared at the three men from where she stood behind Luffy and Zoro, not in the mood to deal with them again.

"We knew you'd come back to the ship!" Flat Afro said, hands on his hips while Jolly Roger Hat laughed.

"Imagine our surprise, finding our stolen ship docked here!"

"You haven't forgotten about us, have you?" Facial Hair taunted.

"Friends of yours?" Luffy asked.

"Not so much…"

"Now, that's not nice!" Jolly Roger Hat yelled. "Our fates are intertwined! I see you brought some friends. Then they'll get the same treatment as you! We'll learn ye to steal ships!" Did they not see Hazel there? Or had they already forgotten that morning? "What ails ya?" Jolly Roger Hat asked, coming up to Zoro and patting him on the head. "Look at me when I'm talking to you!" Zoro did as he was asked, Hazel poking her head out from behind him to match his glare at the men.

"Ow."

Upon seeing the two, the idiot pirates jumped scared into the water, swimming away like their lives depended on it. "Idiots…" Hazel muttered. They set about preparing the boats, tying the two together so they wouldn't get separated. There wasn't enough room on the dinghy to fit all four of them, after all. At least, not comfortably.

Hazel sat next to Zoro, wrapping him in the backup supply of bandages they had. She'd have to pick up more at their next location, if she could. "Now, these are the last of the bandages until further notice, so _please_ don't go do something stupid like cutting through them again, got it?"

"Tch, I had to do it." Hazel glared at him.

"You did _not_ have to slice through them! You made it harder for yourself, you idiot!"

"All right! Let's go!" Luffy's shout came before Zoro could answer, but Hazel would've ignored him anyway, as she went back to treating his wound as best she could. He hissed a little at the antiseptic she used to clean it, but other than that he remained stoic through the whole procedure, and settled back against the boat when she was done. "Hey! Your sail has Buggy's mark on it!" Luffy shouted again, this time towards Nami.

"It was his ship!" She shouted back. "I'll replace it later!"

"Hey, kid wait!" Came a shout from the shore. This was becoming familiar. "I have something to say to you!"

"The mayor!"

Sure enough, Mayor Boodle stood panting on the shore, no longer dressed in his armor. It seemed he'd just run a marathon, trying to catch up to them. "Thank you! I won't forget it!" He yelled, tears running down his face, but with a wide smile as well. The pirates, plus Nami, smiled back, and the captain took a breath to shout back.

"You're welcome, mayor! Take it easy!" As the two ships drifted further away from the shore, Nami turned to count her treasure; but her face fell when she noticed one bag missing.

"Hey...what happened to the treasure…?"

"Oh, I left it with them!"

"WHAT?! You left the treasure?!" Nami screamed, jumping over to their boat.

"Yeah, but their whole town was wrecked. They'll need a lot of money to rebuild it."

"That was _my_ treasure you gave away!" Nami picked Luffy up easily, trying to toss him overboard. The rubber-man gripped the side of the boat to prevent him going over, and Hazel quickly stood and tried to pull Nami back from her brother.

"Hey, Nami, quit it! He can't swim!"

"Take it easy!" Luffy yelled, eyes wide with fear. "If you really want it, let's go back and get it!"

"It's too late! If you ever do anything like that again, I'll kill you!"

"Nami!" Zoro burst out laughing, and Hazel turned her attention to him.

"Stop laughing so hard! I don't have anything else to fix your wound up, dammit!"

Luckily, Nami stopped her tirade on Luffy, leaning back against the boat herself with a smile. "Idiot!" She said, ignoring Luffy's rather comical glare.

"You're laughing!"

"Heehee! No, I'm not!" **Whack!**

"That didn't hurt…"

With a shake of her head, Hazel sat herself down in the cramped quarters as well, pulling her notebook out of her pack. She had a _lot_ to write down.

* * *

**Chester is fun haha let me know what you guys think so far! I hope to be back soon with chapter 3!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Oh my goodness, sorry this took so long to get out! I started a new job last month, and just haven't had the energy to sit and work on this as much, but I made a point this week to get it done! It's a long chapter, about 14k words, so I hope you enjoy!**

* * *

"Hazel?"

The violet-haired woman looked up at the sound of her name, eyes landing on her brother sitting next to her. He looked upset, which instantly set off alarm bells in her head, and she immediately set her notebook to her side. That could wait.

"What is it? What's wrong?" She tried not to sound too frantic, he didn't appear to be dying after all, but she couldn't keep the worry from creeping into her voice. She could feel Zoro's and Nami's eyes on them, questioning the siblings' tone. Luffy seemed to pout for a second before thrusting something into her arms, nearly causing her to drop whatever it was. "Wha-?"

"You can fix it, right?" He asked, sounding hopeful. Hazel looked at the object in her hands, heart falling as she saw what it was. His straw hat, sliced in three places right in the middle, courtesy of a certain clown. Even with all their shenanigans over the years, he'd never gotten it so damaged that it needed actual fixing. Hazel almost couldn't bring herself to meet his gaze, shame wafting off of her as she answered.

"I don't think I can, Luffy...I don't even know where to start," She felt her heart break at Luffy's crestfallen expression. "No wait, don't be sad, I'm sorry! M-maybe I can figure it out! How hard can it be?" But Luffy just shook his head, trying to appear as if he wasn't heartbroken by the news.

"It's ok, I'll just explain to Shanks what happened when we meet again. I'm sure he'll understand…" But they weren't sure, and Hazel hated seeing Luffy this upset, even if he was doing a decent job of hiding it. Suddenly, a pale arm thrust itself between them, grabbing the hat out of Hazel's hands before returning to its owner. "Oh, Nami!"

"I can fix it, but really this thing looks so old and beat up already. You should really just replace it," the orange-haired navigator said, already beginning to patch the hat up.

"I can't replace it! It's Shanks' hat!" Luffy protested, rocking the boat as he jumped up to glare at the woman.

"Stop rocking the boat!" Nami yelled, raising her fist at him.

"Is a hat really that important?" Zoro asked, leaning against the side of the boat next to Hazel. She was about to answer, but Luffy beat her to it.

"Of course it's important! It's my treasure!" The rubber-man shouted passionately, then turned his attention towards his sister. "Hazel, tell them the story!"

"Huh?" Hazel sat back, startled. "You can tell it just as well as I can, Luff!" The boy just shook his head.

"No way! You tell it way better! Tell the story! Tell the story!" He chanted, causing the woman to wince at his volume. Normally she could handle all of Luffy's...Luffy-ness, but they'd only just left Orange Island, and she was sore and tired from her fight with the jester.

"Ok, ok, I'll tell it, just please quiet down a bit," Luffy complied, sitting back down next to her in the cramped space. "Let's see now, where to begin…"

"At the beginning!" Luffy helpfully supplied.

"Right!" Hazel laughed. "The beginning then…"

* * *

_**11 years ago…**_

* * *

"PIRATES! Pirates have been spotted near the shore! They'll be here any minute! Prepare yourselves!"

10 year old Monkey D. Hazel groaned and rubbed her eyes as she sat up in bed, rudely awoken by the man yelling outside her window. Who cares if pirates showed up, it was barely daylight! Some people were trying to sleep! She glanced across the room at the bed her brother slept in, not surprised at all to see him snoring away. It would take an explosion to wake that boy up, and sometimes she wondered if even that would work.

"Everyone gather at the bar! We need to have a plan!" Came another shout, this one from the mayor, followed by banging at their front door. Well, guess she wasn't going back to sleep anytime soon. Oh well, it was probably for the best. Pirates were supposed to be dangerous, weren't they? That's what Gramps always said, anyway…

She plodded to the door, dressed only in a t-shirt large enough to be a nightgown. She was pretty sure it was her dad's, but she honestly couldn't remember. Hazel had just found it in the drawer one day and decided to use it. Why spend money on new clothes if she could make do with what was already on hand? She opened the door to see Woop Slap staring sternly down at her small stature.

"What?" She asked, ruder than she normally might. She had just woken up after all.

"You and your brother need to come to the bar with me, little lady. Lookouts spotted a pirate ship, and it's not safe for you to be left alone." Hazel didn't argue, only nodded and let the man in to wait while she went back to her room. She dressed quickly, pulling on a hand-me-down dress from Makino, then made her way over to Luffy's bed.

"Hey, Luffy! Wake up!" The boy kept snoring. "I said...WAKE UP!" She yelled, pushing him out of the bed and onto the floor.

"Wah!" The boy yelled, tangling in his blankets as he tried to figure out where he was. "Owww! Hazel, what was that for?" He pouted, tears springing to his eyes. Hazel looked away, shoulders hunched and crossing her arms.

"Mayor says we need to go to the bar, it's an emergency. Sorry for pushing you…" Her brother just grinned, mood changing easily.

"Ok!" She helped the six year old get dressed ("No, Luffy, you can't just wear underwear!"), and the two headed back to the man waiting patiently in their living room. "Hi, old man!"

"You! Respect your elders!" Woop Slap scolded, but he wasn't that offended. He was used to it from the boy; what could he really expect from these kids? "Come on now, we've got to get going before that ship gets here!"

"What ship?" Luffy asked his sister, who contemplated just how much to tell him. He got excited pretty easily, after all, and she worried he'd think these were like the pirates from the stories she often told him.

"Never you mind, just get going!" And the children were ushered out the door into the street. It was a short walk to Partys Bar, and they could already see the crowd gathering inside the building. It was going to be a tight fit; good thing they didn't take up much room. The three slid inside easily, the crowd parting for the mayor, and made their way up to the counter where a pretty young girl was serving drinks and snacks. Makino had only recently gained ownership of the bar, but she was already proving to be a great hostess. Her expression brightened upon seeing the children, and she immediately set to work getting them some breakfast and orange juice.

"Ah, Hazel! I'm so glad to see the dress fits alright!" The older girl said, placing a plate of eggs and sausage in front of her. Hazel smiled politely up at her, grateful, as Luffy began shoveling food into his mouth with gusto.

"It does, thanks again Makino-san!" The bartender gave her a grin before turning back to her other customers, leaving the kids to their breakfast. Makino was always helping them, it seemed, whether it be with hand-me-down clothes or free food and drink. Luffy thought they had a "treasure tab" open, something they would pay back when they got older and could start going on their own adventures, and earning their own money; but Hazel knew Makino never expected to see a single berri, and for that she was grateful. Makino was the closest thing Hazel had to a role model.

The dull roar of the bar had grown in volume, and Woop Slap now stood on a table trying to get everyone's attention. Hazel watched him, shoveling food into her mouth with nearly as much gusto as Luffy, as the mayor struggled to call everyone to attention. It seemed no one could hear him over their own worried conversations; if he didn't get control soon, it could turn into a frenzy. Hazel sighed, setting down her fork and standing precariously on her stool. She stuck two fingers between her teeth, blowing out a shrill whistle that had the people closest to her covering their ears.

"Pay attention!" The little girl yelled when the bar's patrons turned her way, glaring at the loud sound. Hazel ignored their stares, instead sitting back in her seat to continue eating, attention fixed squarely on the mayor. The man cleared his throat, drawing everyone else's attention back to him, and began his announcement.

"Ahem, thank you. Now then, as you've all heard, pirates were spotted near our shores! We don't have much of value, and we can't fight them off! I'd say we don't have much time now before they get here, so we gotta come up with a plan fast!" He was quickly drowned out after that as everyone in the bar began shouting out ideas. They ranged from "Run for the mountains!" all the way to "If we hide they won't think anyone lives here and they'll leave!" Some ideas were better than others, of course, which was proven when one man yelled "We should take Foosha Village and push it somewhere else!"

"Makino-san, you may wanna cut that guy off…" Hazel muttered, and the other girl just nodded, staring incredulously at the man who'd just spoken.

"I haven't even given him anything yet…"

"Oooo! Hazel, did you hear that? Pirates!" Luffy looked at her with excitement in his eyes, clearly not worried about the possible danger they were in.

"Don't look so excited yet, Luff...they may not be nice pirates." The boy looked taken aback by that.

"But I thought pirates just went on adventures? That's what you always say!"

"Those are stories! Unfortunately, stories don't always equal reality…" She wasn't surprised to see Luffy pouting at her, arms crossed and cheeks puffed out.

"You sound like Gramps...I bet these are good pirates, just like your stories! You'll see!" Hazel just shook her head, smiling slightly.

"Let's hope so...either way, it doesn't hurt to prepare. They could just as easily be dangerous!" Luffy seemed to think about that for a second.

"It's ok, I've been practicing and my punches are as strong as pistols! I'll protect you, Hazel!" He beamed at her, and Hazel found herself matching it.

"Goofball, that's my job…" Luffy just giggled at her, turning back to his food and dumping the rest in his mouth before chugging down his orange juice. Hazel sat back to sip her own glass as she watched the mayor struggle once again to gain control of the meeting. He still stood on his table, hands cupped around his mouth as he tried to be heard above the roar of ideas being suggested by the crowd of people.

"Would you all quiet down?! I can't think straight!" Woop Slap yelled, not noticing the door to the bar opening behind him. The room went quiet, all eyes transfixed on the group standing in the doorway, led by a tall man with shocking red hair. He was wearing a black cape over his white shirt, and an old looking straw hat on top of his head. Hmm...he didn't _look_ scary…

"Excuse me, my men and I were hoping to get some food and drinks? We've had a long journey!" He spoke politely, shocking most of the inhabitants, who quickly moved out of the way in fear. The man didn't seem to mind, and casually strode inside, followed by who Hazel assumed was his crew: a very tall man with long black hair, a very round man with a bandana and sunglasses, and a blonde man with a headband that read "Yasopp", followed by a bunch of rather generic looking men, in Hazel's opinion anyway.

She'd tried to inch her way closer to Luffy, and then behind the bar, before the pirates fully approached, but the boy wouldn't budge. He was staring transfixed at the approaching group of men, and his eyes followed them as they sat near the young children. The captain sat on Luffy's other side, and the room collectively held its breath as Makino rushed to get drinks ready for the pirates. The pirates seemed to be paying no mind to the siblings, and Hazel made to grab Luffy's arm and make a run for it; but she was interrupted before she had the chance.

"Hey, mister! Do you have a big ship?"

The villagers all gasped, holding their breath as Luffy tugged at the red-headed man's cape. Hazel gripped his arm and pulled him back in his seat, scolding him under her breath. Just because they hadn't done anything _yet_ didn't mean they weren't going to! The man turned to look at them, expression neutral, and Hazel noticed a trio of old scars across his left eye. What kind of dangerous things had he done to earn those?

Suddenly, the man's face broke out into a huge grin. "Our ship is huge! You could see it from the mountaintops!"

"Really?!" Luffy asked excitedly. The man nodded, and they both grinned widely at each other.

This seemed to break the tension that'd built in the bar, and the mayor made his way through the crowd to the counter. He stood with his hands on his hips, glaring at the pirates in an authoritative manner, despite the fear still gripping his heart.

"Now listen here, you! This is a peaceful village! We don't want any trouble!" The man actually looked surprised for a moment, then smiled again, though this time more politely.

"Of course! My men won't trouble you as long as we're here!" The pirates all nodded, easy smiles fixed firmly on their faces. "We're the Red-Hair Pirates, and as Captain, you have my word!" The mayor still seemed uneasy, but finding no reason to argue he nodded, turning to the children still staring at the captain in awe.

"You two best be getting home before trouble comes knocking!" He warned, hoping to urge the children away from the pirates. Better for them to avoid the group entirely rather than risk either injury or bad influence. He didn't want to have to explain to Garp why his grandchildren were spouting off about pirates all of a sudden. The siblings just stuck their tongues out at him rudely.

"I wanna stay and talk to the captain!"

"You're not the boss of me, Mayor!" Woop Slap's eyebrow twitched at the kids' insolence, and if it weren't for Makino's intervention, he would have started scolding them in front of their new "friends".

"Mayor, it's ok, I'll watch them!" The young woman said, refilling the siblings' juice cups and therefore distracting them for the moment. Well, Luffy was distracted. Hazel's attention was still fixated on the red-head next to them, drinking away at his beer and laughing with his men. She didn't dare to hope that this was one of the _good_ pirates, like from the stories she told Luffy. Maybe Gramps was wrong? Maybe they _weren't_ all bad…

"So what's your name, mister?" Luffy asked once the mayor had left, tugging on the captain's sleeve once again. Hazel winced slightly; he had been talking to his men after all. She hoped he wasn't offended by Luffy's lack of manners…

The man just chuckled, face lighting up with that grin once again as he regarded the two. He was very easygoing, Hazel noted. He reminded her of Luffy…"You know, you should always give your own name before asking for someone else's," he teased.

"I'm Luffy!" Her brother replied easily, happy for someone new to talk to. "This is my big sister, Hazel! Now, what's your name?" The man laughed again at Luffy's impatience.

"I'm Shanks! It's nice to meet you two!"

"Do you go on adventures?" Luffy asked, eyes shining with curiosity and excitement. Hazel just leaned back on her stool, listening to their conversation while she sipped her orange juice.

"Of course! We're pirates, aren't we?" Shanks answered, like it was obvious. Hazel didn't think Luffy could light up more than he already was.

"I wanna go on adventures too! Hazel, let's become pirates!" He exclaimed, whirling around to face his sister. She smiled, sharing his enthusiasm, though as always trying to be the voice of reason.

"I'm sure Gramps would love that," She chuckled, and Luffy laughed along with her.

"Aw, who cares? We'd get to have lots of adventures, and meet all sorts of people, and eat all kinds of food!"

"You know, that does sound like fun…" Hazel trailed off, picturing it clearly in her head. The two of them on the high seas, stuffing their faces with exotic foods, trading stories with everyone they met...it could be a good life.

"Haha, hey Captain! We should bring them with us!" One of Shanks' men, the round one, laughed. Hazel felt he wasn't serious, but that didn't stop Luffy from practically vibrating with excitement.

"Can we?! CanWeCanWeCanWe?!" Hazel placed her hands on his shoulders to settle him before he fell off the stool, but his gaze remained fixed on Shanks, who was currently glaring half-heartedly at the man who'd spoken.

"We're not bringing a coupla kids on board!" He scolded, causing his men to laugh and Luffy to pout. Hazel herself felt a bit dejected at the declaration, but being older and more mature, she at least could understand why it would be a bad idea for them to go. She really would've liked to though…

"Hey, why not?!" Luffy whined, raising his fists as if to fight the man. "I'm super strong! And I'm learning how to swim! And Hazel tells great stories! We'd be perfect on a pirate ship!" Hazel wasn't sure how storytelling would be a good skill for a pirate to have, but it ultimately didn't matter. Shanks had started laughing at her brother's declaration of strength, and she found herself pouting at him.

"You're still too young, kid! The sea is no picnic, especially if you can't even swim yet! What if you fell overboard?"

"Hazel would save me! She's a great swimmer!"

"I dunno if I'd be all that effective against a strong current, though, Luffy…" Hazel muttered, startling when the boy whirled his attention onto her.

"Whose side are you on, Hazel?!"

"I'm not on anyone's side!" Hazel argued, getting into her little brother's face. Just then, two large plates were placed on the counter before them, filled with meats and breads and fruits. The kids were startled out of their brewing fight and their stomachs rumbled at the sight.

"Lunchtime!" Makino stated, drawing a grateful glance from Hazel as the two began devouring their meal. Shanks and his crew began to laugh again goodnaturedly. "Can I get you and your crew anything, Captain?"

"We'll take some lunch as well, if that's alright, Miss…"

"Makino!"

"Makino-san…"

The young woman set about serving the pirates, and Luffy turned to Hazel, food sticking out of his mouth as he grinned. "You see? I told you they were good pirates!" Hazel could only grin and shake her head, turning back to her lunch.

And so began an interesting friendship between two young children and a group of pirates. Luffy asked Shanks to take him and his sister along almost daily, and every time, the man refused. Hazel believed he thought Luffy would eventually give up, but she knew better. She'd warned the captain multiple times, but he always just laughed in that easy going way of his, taking each day in stride. The pirates spent most of their days at Makino's bar, and thus the children also began to spend more and more time there. Hazel had begun asking Makino to let her help out with some of the chores, as a way to make up for all the free food and drink she'd given to them; but the older girl would have none of it, insisting that it was no problem, and that the two would just pay her back after going on some adventures.

Before long, they heard talk of the Red-Hair Pirates going off on a voyage, leaving their little village for the first time in weeks. Luffy ramped up his requests to join them - they'd planned on returning, the first mate had told them when Hazel asked - but their captain was resolute. They would not be bringing the kids along. Shanks did agree to allow them to explore the ship on occasion, supervised of course, as a sort of peace treaty. The siblings had been in awe the first time they inspected every nook and cranny of the enormous ship; the figurehead was the size of their house! Luffy had bounced the entire way home, and even after she put him to bed, Hazel knew it'd likely be hours before he fell asleep. He was too excited.

But it was a surprise to her when, in the middle of the night, she woke up to find his bed empty.

* * *

"Do you need anything else for your voyage, Captain?" Makino asked the red-head still seated at her bar. He was the only one still there, late as it was, and his men were either asleep on the ship or at the tiny local inn, depending on preference. He'd found a strange sort of peace in the little bar, with the young woman who ran it with a friendly smile.

"Makino-san, I've told you to just call me Shanks," he joked, knowing she likely never would. Even when they were alone, she remained ever the polite hostess; it only made Shanks admire her more. "I believe you've already got us well-stocked. Besides, we won't be gone long. I've grown quite fond of this place!"

"Will you be sticking around long, then?" Makino asked as she wiped down the last few tables, stacking the chairs on top so she could clean the floor. "I can think of a few people who'd be very glad to hear that!" The man joined in her laughter.

"I just hope Luffy doesn't take it too hard when I actually leave him behind tomorrow," Shanks remarked, thinking of the young boy. He liked him, and the violet-haired girl. The kids had grown on him easily, and he hated the idea that one may actually hate him for keeping him safe. He wasn't about to give in, however; the open sea really was no place for kids that young. Maybe if they were a bit older…

"He'll be ok, Hazel will find a way to distract him!" Makino reassured, bringing a smile to Shanks' face. Hazel at least understood why he wouldn't bring them with, though he could tell underneath her stern facade she was a bit disappointed too. Maybe he'd find a storybook while they were gone; a gift could do a lot to smooth things over.

Before their conversation could continue, the two adults were surprised to hear footsteps running down the street outside. They looked to the door, eyes widening as it slammed open, revealing a panting Hazel, tears running down her face.

"Hazel!" Makino ran towards the girl, wiping her face with her apron. "What is it? What's wrong?"

"I-!" The girl started, gasping in a breath as she continued to sob. Shanks got up and made his way over, kneeling down and placing a hand on her shoulder in concern.

"It's ok, just take a deep breath and tell us what happened," he instructed, keeping his voice steady in an effort to calm her. Makino shot him a grateful look, and he just nodded in return. Hazel did as he said, taking in a deep, shuddering breath as she got her sobs under control.

"I-I, I can't f-find L-L-Luffy!" She broke down completely on the last word, and Makino shot him a frantic look as she wrapped her arms around the younger girl. Shanks felt himself freeze for only a moment, shock overtaking him as he tried to think of what might have happened. He quickly shook himself out of it, though, donning his Captain's Face, and immediately getting to work.

"Don't worry, we'll find him," He assured her, standing up and making his way outside to call his men. With his whole crew on the search, they'd easily be able to sweep the whole town, as well as the surrounding woods. His crew were just as fond of the kid as he was, so he had no doubt they'd willingly join the search, whether it was Captain's Orders or not.

Meanwhile, back in Partys Bar, Makino guided Hazel to the counter, sitting beside her as she rubbed soothing circles into the little girl's back. It wasn't often that Hazel got like this; it was easy to forget that despite her bravado, Hazel was just a 10 year old girl. Makino took in the poor girl's state, only just now realizing how much of a hurry she must've been in.

"Hazel, you must be freezing!" She ran back to the storage room, where she kept a few blankets in case of emergencies. She wrapped one quickly around Hazel's shivering arms, and lay the other across her lap so it covered her feet as well. The girl wasn't even wearing shoes, just a big, old t-shirt that fell to her knees. She must have seen Luffy was gone and ran without a second thought. Makino tried not to let her thoughts stray too far; she didn't even want to imagine the state the girl would be in should the worst occur. "Don't worry, Captain will find him!" She reassured, both for herself and the young girl still sobbing beside her.

While Makino made the poor girl some hot cocoa to warm her up, the Red-Hair pirates were searching high and low for the missing little boy. They searched behind alleys, in the trees and nearly halfway up the mountain; nothing. Some even checked the rooftops and the docks, but still no sign of Luffy. Shanks stood at the docks, straw hat in his hands as he ran his fingers through his bright red hair, trying to think of where else to look. It had only been a few hours since the siblings had gone home to bed, right after touring his ship…

"Dammit!" He yelled, running up the gangplank to his ship. He knocked on every barrel on deck, checked every nook and cranny, and called the few of his men that stayed on board to keep watch to help him search. They checked every room, every cabin, and it wasn't until Shanks reached the storeroom far below deck that he made any progress. From the corner of the room, he could hear faint giggling, and he didn't have to guess at which barrel it came from.

"WAHH!" Luffy yelled as he was sprung from his hiding space. Shanks was dangling him by his foot, having yanked him from the barrel of vegetables with ease. "Shanks, lemme go!"

"YOU! Do you know how worried everyone's been?! What are you doing?!"

"You were gonna leave me behind! I wanted to go with you!"

"You idiot!" Shanks cut himself off from saying more, angry as he was. Instead, he marched the little boy off the ship, up the docks, and right into Partys Bar, depositing him in a heap in front of his sniffling sister.

"Luffy!" Hazel yelled, jumping off the stool immediately to hug him. Luffy, for his part, was too busy pouting to reciprocate, rubbing his head where a bump was forming after being dropped on the floor. "Where have you been?!"

"I found this little monster hiding on my ship. Apparently, he thought he could stowaway." Shanks explained evenly, staring the boy down with a stern look he usually reserved for his rowdiest crewmembers. Hazel's and Makino's eyes widened, both glaring at Luffy for the scare he'd given them.

"I would've been fine! You'd see I was strong enough to go with you, and then you'd have to let me join your crew!"

"Luffy, you idiot!" Hazel yelled, grabbing the boy by the shoulders. "Do you understand how worried about you I was?! I didn't know where the hell you were, or if you were hurt, or if you'd be coming back! Next time, at least take me with you!"

"THAT'S NOT THE POINT!" Shanks yelled.

"Luffy, you really scared us," Makino said, much more calm than the other two. She was just glad to see he was ok, that it was something as simple as him sneaking onto the pirates' ship. "You scared Hazel most of all, she was so worried that she ran here in tears without even getting dressed…" That caught the boy's attention, and he whipped his head around to look at his sister with big, round eyes.

"Really? I made you cry?" A guilty feeling overcame him as Hazel wiped at her eyes. Luffy's eyes welled with tears, his lower lip trembling, and he wrapped his arms around Hazel's shoulders to begin crying into her chest. "I'm sorry!" He bawled, and Hazel felt herself beginning to cry again. "I didn't mean to…!"

The adults stood in silence as they watched the two sobbing children, both at a loss for what to do. Shanks shook his head in exasperation, muttering that they'd need to add another item to their checklist before leaving from now on. Makino simply smiled at him, before kneeling down to dry the children's tears.

"Come on, now, you two…" She said, lifting them both to their feet. "It's time to get some sleep. Come on, I'll walk you. Captain?" Shanks looked up, and couldn't help the fond smile that bloomed across his face as he looked at the three.

"Yeah, I'll walk with you…"

* * *

The next morning had resulted in a very stern lecture from Woop Slap, one which Luffy firmly ignored in favor of shouting goodbye to the departing ship. Shanks had said his goodbyes the night before, after he helped Makino tuck the children back into bed. Hazel had taken hours to fall back to sleep; her eyes were fixed firmly on her brother's bed the entire time, fearing that if she looked away for even a second he'd disappear again. She'd firmly decided a nap was in order that afternoon, as long as she found something to occupy the six year old at her side.

It was surprising to the siblings how easily they fell back into everyday life without the presence of the Red-Hair Pirates. Their days were filled with play, imagined adventures that took them all around the village, much to the adults chagrin. Meals continued to be mostly provided by Makino, though Hazel used her very basic, childish knowledge of boiling water to cook them some meals at home as well. Life was as good as it could get for two young kids on their own.

As the days turned into weeks, they began to start wondering when Shanks would return. Maybe he never would? Had Benn Beckman been lying to her when he'd told Hazel they'd be back soon? Hazel found herself worrying her lip as she stared over the empty harbor, willing the large ship to appear on the horizon.

"Wah! Hazel, help!" Luffy yelled from the water next to her, flailing his arms and splashing about. The girl rolled her gray eyes, hooking her hands under his arms and hoisting him fully to his feet.

"Luffy, you can stand here just fine. Now, lie back and float!"

"I can't! I just keep sinking!"

"Keep trying at it, then! You won't figure it out if you give up at the first sign of failure!"

Luffy huffed and pouted, but ultimately listened to his sister, lying faceup on the water as he attempted to stay afloat. Hazel didn't know what it was, swimming had come so easily to her; at least, she assumed it did, as she'd been able to swim for as long as she could remember. Luffy, on the other hand, just sank. Like a rock. Or an anchor.

"Oi, Luffy! Hazel!" The kids looked up at the distant shout, confused when they saw nothing but the empty harbor. Looking further to her left, Hazel let out a gasp, face breaking out into a grin at the sight of the familiar figurehead coming around the coast.

"SHANKS!" Luffy yelled, kicking up water as he leapt to his feet, running ahead of his sister to the end of the dock to wait for the pirates' ship. It was still hard to tell from the distance, but there at the bow stood a red-haired man with a long spyglass, waving his hand to the two. It would still take some time for the ship to pull into harbor, but the siblings waited patiently (one more than the other), until finally the gangplank was lowered right beside them, with Shanks standing at the top with a wide grin on his face.

Luffy wasted no time in running up to him, not even giving the man a chance to step onto the docks. The boy leapt at the man, and Shanks caught him with ease, swinging him around for a moment before setting him back on his feet. Hazel could hear the rest of his crew laughing, but thought nothing of it as she beamed up at the pirate who'd finally been able to leave his ship.

"You kids didn't have to wait here for us!" Shanks teased, ruffling Hazel's purple locks. She bat his hand away, smoothing her curly hair out as best as she could.

"We weren't! I was teaching Luffy how to swim!"

"Yeah! Watch this!" Luffy yelled, then promptly leapt off the dock into the water below. Unfortunately for him, the water here was much deeper than where they'd been practicing, and he still couldn't float worth a damn.

"Luffy, you idiot!" Hazel yelled, jumping in after him. She hauled him out of the water easily, thumping his back to help him cough the water out of his lungs. It was pretty obvious the boy would be ok, and so Shanks began to laugh at the children's antics, causing Hazel to pout up at him.

"What was that?!" He shouted through his laughter. "You're supposed to swim, not sink! You're like an anchor!"

"Hey!" The siblings shouted in offense, nevermind the fact that Hazel had just made the same comparison earlier that day. She walked up to the laughing man and kicked him in the shin, turning his laughter into shouts of pain as he began to hop on one foot.

"Oi! No need for that, Hazel, I'm only teasing! Oh! I know what'll smooth things over," Shanks put his foot down and signaled to one of his men. The blond man, Yasopp, hurried over with a large wrapped parcel, rectangular in shape, and handed it to Hazel. She stared at the men skeptically for a moment before tearing into it, gasping in delight when she saw it was a book of fairy tales.

"You got this for me?" She asked, eyes shining. "ThankYouThankYouThankYou!" She threw her arms around the redhead, surprising him with the sudden affection, then let go so she could continue to stare at the book like it was the most precious piece of gold in all the seas.

"Cool! New stories! Hey, Shanks! What'd you get me? Food?"

"Luffy! Don't be rude!"

"Hahaha! I'll buy lunch, how about that? Come on, men! To the bar!" The pirates and children cheered, and they all made their way through the village.

The crowd certainly lived up to the bar's namesake, a cacophony of riotous laughter as the pirates relayed stories of their journey. Luffy listened with wide eyes and a wider smile, but Hazel's attention was stuck firmly on the gift Shanks had brought her. Its pages were thick, its binding was loose, and the smell of ink and parchment was strong enough to make her dizzy if she breathed it in for too long. It was perfect.

She'd waited until she'd finished eating her lunch to open it, scarfing down food nearly fast enough to choke. The thing opened with a loud _thump_, and her eyes danced across the pages, quickly perusing its contents. The book itself seemed to be quite old, but the stories inside it were _new_, ones she'd never heard before. She couldn't wait to read them.

Hazel made her way past dozens of stories, before coming to a surprised stop when halfway through she found the pages blank. "Wh-what happened?" She asked aloud, trying not to sound dejected. Her question had grabbed Shanks' attention, pulling him from a rather loud (and slightly drunken) rendition of a sea shanty she'd also never heard.

"What do ya think? You've got some new stories, and room to write your own! Pretty cool, right?"

"My...own?" She looked back at the blank pages, slightly intimidated at the prospect. She couldn't possibly come up with something original that matched the greatness of what came before, that matched the life this dusty tome had already lived.

"Sure! The seller said the binding was kept loose so you could add more pages if you needed to! I figured it would be perfect for you!" Hazel was silent for a moment, staring at the blank pages with an intense look in her eyes.

"I won't write in this…" She whispered, catching Shanks off guard.

"Ah...right, well, sorry about that!" He chuckled, rubbing his neck with a sheepish expression. "I guess I probably should've double-checked before getting you a gift like that-?"

"I won't write in it!" She cut him off, turning to look at him with determination in her eyes, standing on the barstool to show the magnitude of her declaration. "Not unless it's perfect! The story I write in here is going to be the best story ever told in the entire world! That's the only thing worthy of such a great gift from such a great person!"

The bar had gone silent, grins blooming on the pirates' faces. Makino's eyes shined from behind the bar as she watched the little girl worry her lip between her teeth, startled at her own outburst but not backing down from it. Shanks began to laugh, full and hearty and not at all mocking, then looked at Hazel with something close to pride in his eyes.

"Sounds like a pretty solid dream, Little Violet." Her eyes widened at the nickname and his grin widened. "I wanna be the first to read it!" Hazel matched his grin as she nodded enthusiastically, nearly falling off the stool. Shanks reached out to steady her, and as she sat back down Luffy cheered, running up to her with a big smile.

"My sister's so cool!" Hazel blushed as he threw his arms around her, squeezing the air out of her with his surprisingly strong grip. The attention finally moved off of her, and she sighed with relief. She turned back to her book, thoughts of the stories she could tell flitting away in the back of her mind.

* * *

A year passes by quickly, especially when it's filled with fun and friends. The siblings built up a relationship with the Red-Hair Pirates that everyone knew would last a lifetime, for good or ill, and every time the crew went away, it became harder and harder to say goodbye. Even for those members that Hazel often butted heads with, it was hard to see them leave the siblings behind.

**BAM! **

"Wow! You're amazing!" Luffy yelled, staring at where just seconds before had been an apple.

"Aw, that's nothin'," Yasopp bragged, brandishing his pistol over his shoulder. "I can shoot the whiskers off an ant at 50 paces!" Hazel rolled her eyes from where she sat on the sidelines, doodling away in a notebook Shanks had brought back on his latest voyage.

"Do ants even have whiskers?" She asked, drawing an irritated glare from the man. "Come on, it's lunchtime!" Hazel grabbed Luffy by the hand, and the three made their way to their favorite bar. Makino already had lunch ready for them, the routine familiar to everyone at this point, and they quickly settled into their places to eat. When Hazel finished, she hopped behind the bar to wash her plate, picking up a dishrag when she was done so she could wash some tables. She'd given up on asking Makino to let her help out as repayment for taking care of them, and Makino had given up on telling the girl not to worry about it. So it was that Hazel "worked" by cleaning the bar in the afternoons.

"Y'know Luffy, I got a son…" She heard Yasopp say as he chugged his beer. "He'd be just about your age!"

"Not again! You've told me this a thousand times!" He had, and Hazel was sick of hearing about it; though where she felt an unexplained, visceral anger at the mention of said child, she suspected Luffy was probably just annoyed.

"And you're gonna hear about him a thousand more times!" Yasopp yelled, banging his empty glass against Luffy's head.

"Hey!"

"It's a hard thing to be parted from my son, but I had no choice!" The man shouted, dancing on the table and waving his glass around. "The pirate flag kept calling me!" The pirates around him cheered, and Hazel glared at him from where she sat nursing the small bump forming on Luffy's head.

"Get off the damn table!" She yelled, hands on her hips and looking every bit like a tiny housemaid.

"Oi! Young Lady! Kids like you should watch their mouths!"

"If you wanna be a parent so bad, go back to your own kid!"

"Why you-!"

"Hazel! Can you come help me with this please?!" Came Makino's voice from the bar, effectively ending the argument before it could escalate further. She spent the rest of the afternoon doing what she could to keep the two away from each other, always the peacekeeper.

It didn't take long for Hazel to pull herself out of her foul mood, especially when Shanks showed up, his crew diving into a loud rendition of Binks' Brew. The siblings joined in, voices shrill and off-key, but the atmosphere was so light that no one cared.

"Hazel! Storytime! Storytime! Storytime!" Luffy chanted, spinning on his stool while his sister laughed. It had become sort of a tradition, after dinner she'd read from her storybook, and then the two would walk home for bed. She used to just wait until they got home, but ever since the declaration of her dream, Hazel had felt she should include the pirates as well. After all, without them would she have ever even realized her dream?

"Ok ok, let's see what's next…" She pulled the book out from a nook behind the bar where she kept her things during the day, opening it up to where she'd left off. There was only one story she hadn't read yet; Luffy often preferred listening to the same ones over and over again, but today she decided to finally read the last one. "Looks like this one's called Hansel and Gretel…"

"Those names sound stupid, you should change them!" Luffy said seriously, finger in his nose.

"Stop picking your nose! That's what they're supposed to be called, Luffy! What do you suggest, then, hm?" Hazel asked, hands on her hips.

"Hazel and Luffy!" He beamed, and Hazel deflated. How could she argue with that?

"Alright, alright, fine! Hazel and Luffy it is…" She smiled, beginning to read. "_Once upon a time, there was a very poor woodcutter who lived in a cottage with his children, Hazel and Luffy. The children's stepmother was often mean to the children, and constantly nagged her husband. 'We don't have enough food for everyone! We need to get rid of those two brats!' She yelled, trying to convince the woodcutter to abandon his children in the forest._" Hazel paused for a second, not sure she liked this story all that much; but Luffy's eager look urged her forward.

"_'Take them miles from home, so far they can't find their way back!' The stepmother would yell. 'Maybe somebody will give them a home.' The downcast woodcutter didn't know what to do, but one night, Hazel overheard their conversation, and comforted Luffy._

_'Don't worry! If they do leave us in the forest, we'll find the way home!' She slipped out of the house and filled her pockets with little white pebbles, then went back to bed. The next morning, the woodcutter led his children into the forest, and Hazel left a trail of pebbles on the mossy ground behind her as they walked. At a certain point, the children found they really had been left all alone: the woodcutter had plucked up enough courage to leave his children behind. All he left was a mumbled excuse, and then he was gone._" Hazel definitely did not like this story, and she could feel her jaw clenching as she continued reading.

"_Luffy began to sob as night fell and their father did not return. Hazel too felt scared, but she hid her feelings as she comforted her brother. 'Don't worry! I'll get us home even if Father doesn't come back, you'll see!' The white pebbles glimmered in the full moonlight, and the children found their way home. They slipped in through the window, not making a sound, and crept into bed._

_When their stepmother found them home the next morning, she flew into a rage. She locked herself and the woodcutter in their bedroom, berating him for not following her orders. The weak woodcutter protested, torn as he was between shame and fear of disobeying his cruel wife. The wicked stepmother kept Hazel and Luffy under lock and key all day with nothing for supper but a sip of water and some hard bread. All night, husband and wife argued, and the next morning the woodcutter led his children into the forest once again._

_Hazel, however, had not eaten her bread, and as she walked through the trees, she left a trail of crumbs behind her to mark the way. But the little girl had forgotten about the hungry birds that lived in the forest. When they saw her, they flew along behind and in no time at all, had eaten all the crumbs. Again, with a lame excuse, the woodcutter left his two children by themselves._

_'Don't worry! I left a trail like last time!' She tried to comfort her brother, but when night fell they saw, to their horror, that the breadcrumb trail had been eaten._

_'I'm scared!' Luffy cried, bitterly. 'I'm cold and hungry and I want to go home!'_

_'Don't be afraid. I'm here to look after you!' Hazel tried to encourage her brother, but she too shivered when she glimpsed frightening shadows and evil eyes around them in the darkness. All night the two children huddled together for warmth at the foot of a large tree._

_When dawn broke, they started to wander about the forest, seeking a path, but all hope soon faded. They were well and truly lost. On they walked and walked, till suddenly they came upon a strange cottage in the middle of a glade._

_'This is chocolate!' gasped Luffy as he broke a lump of plaster from the wall._

_'And this is icing!' exclaimed Hazel, putting another piece of wall in her mouth. Starving but delighted, the children began to eat pieces of candy broken off the cottage. 'Isn't this delicious?' said Hazel, with her mouth full. She had never tasted anything so nice. 'We should stay here!' She declared. They were just about to try a piece of the biscuit door when it quietly swung open._

_'Well, well!' said an old woman, peering out with a crafty look. 'Don't you children have quite the sweet tooth? Come in! Come in, you've nothing to fear!' Unluckily for Luffy and Hazel, however, the sugar candy cottage belonged to an old witch; her trap for catching unwary victims. The two children had come to a really nasty place._

_'You're nothing but skin and bones!' said the witch, locking Luffy into a cage. I shall fatten you up and eat you!"_

_'You can do the housework,' she told Hazel grimly, 'then I'll make a meal of you, too!' As luck would have it, the witch had very bad eyesight, and when Hazel smeared butter on her glasses, she could see even less._

_'Let me feel your finger!' said the witch to Luffy every day to check if he was getting any fatter. Now, Hazel had brought her brother a chicken bone, and when the witch went to touch his finger, Luffy held out the bone._

_'You're still much too thin!' she complained. 'When will you become plump?' One day the witch grew tired of waiting. 'Light the oven,' she told Hazel. 'We're going to have a tasty roasted boy today!' A little later, hungry and impatient, she went on. 'Run and see if the oven is hot enough.'_

_Hazel returned, whimpering, 'I can't tell if it is hot enough or not.'_

_Angrily, the witch screamed at the little girl. 'Useless child! All right, I'll see for myself.' But when the witch bent down to peer inside the oven and check the heat, Hazel gave her a tremendous push and slammed the oven door shut. The witch had come to a fit and proper end. Hazel ran to set her brother free and they made quite sure that the oven door was tightly shut behind the witch. Indeed, just to be on the safe side, they fastened it firmly with a large padlock. Then they stayed for several days to eat some more of the house, till they discovered amongst the witch's belongings a huge chocolate egg. Inside lay a casket of gold coins._

_'Hey look,' said Luffy. 'Treasure! That old witch won't be needing this anymore!' They filled a large basket with food and set off into the forest to search for the way home. This time, luck was with them, and on the second day, they saw their father come out of the house towards them, weeping._

_'Your stepmother is dead. Come home with me now, my dear children!' The two children hugged the woodcutter._

_'Promise you'll never ever desert us again,' said Hazel, throwing her arms round her father's neck. Luffy opened the casket._

_'Look, Father! We're rich now! You'll never have to chop wood again!' And they all lived happily together ever after. The End._"

Hazel shut the book with a louder slam than she'd meant to, but nobody seemed to notice. The kids in that story were stupid, she'd decided. Who would willingly go back to a father who'd abandoned them of his own volition?

"I wanna live in a house made of food! That sounds delicious!" Luffy yelled with excitement, oblivious to his sister's thoughts. She smiled at him, happy that he was happy at least, and picked herself up off the barstool.

"That also sounds super messy. Besides, what would you do once you'd eaten it all?" Luffy pouted, having not considered that, and she laughed. "Come on, Luff. Time for bed!" The boy whined as she pulled him out of the bar, wanting to stay and hang out some more, but they'd barely made it out the door before he let out a wide yawn.

* * *

Throughout the year the Red-Hair Pirates spent at Foosha Village, Luffy had never once given up on asking to be taken along on their trips. Shanks always refused, stating he was too young and weak. There'd thankfully been no more stowaway incidents, but that did nothing to deter Luffy's spirit. He wanted to be a pirate, to go on adventures, and he was determined to do so! He'd show them he was strong enough to be a pirate!

Which is how he found himself standing on the ship's figurehead, knife in hand as his sister and the crew stared at him in confusion. "Hey, Luffy! What're you up to now?" Luffy huffed.

"I've had it with you guys! Now you'll have to take me seriously! This is how tough I am!"

"Haha! Get it over with!" Shanks yelled, "Whatever it is…"

"What's that pup up to now?" Someone else asked with a smirk.

"Luffy! What are you doing?!" Hazel called, the only one sounding concerned for the boy. She let out a scream as Luffy shoved the knife he'd been holding into his face, just under his left eye. Everyone let out a shocked yell, rushing forward to stop him.

"YEOW!"

"YOU IDIOT! WHAT'D YOU DO THAT FOR?!"

After rescuing Luffy from himself, the large group made their way to Partys Bar; beer and ale already flowing from glass mugs to open mouths. "A toast!" Shanks yelled from the bar. "To Luffy's...courage...and our great voyage!" A loud cheer rose up from the crew, shouts of more booze and meat standing out the most.

"It didn't hurt a bit!" Luffy yelled, tears in his eyes and bandage on his face.

"You liar! That was a foolish thing to do!" Shanks and Hazel both scolded.

"I'm not the least bit afraid of getting hurt! Take me with you on your next voyage! I wanna be a pirate too!"

"You?! A pirate?! Impossible!" Shanks laughed in his face. Hazel huffed out a breath as she went back to drinking her juice. You'd think they'd get bored of having this same conversation over and over again, but then again, nothing surprised her anymore when it came to those two. "Luffy, do you know why we call you 'Anchor'? Because you can't swim - you just sink! What good is a pirate who can't swim?" He was right, of course. No matter how much Hazel worked with him, Luffy _still_ hadn't grasped how to even float on the water.

"But if I don't fall overboard, then it doesn't matter if I'm an anchor!" Luffy protested. "And I'm a strong fighter! I've been training! My punch is as powerful as a pistol!" He threw a few air-punches to demonstrate. Shanks didn't seem too impressed.

"A pistol, eh? Is that so…"

"Are you doubting me?!"

"Calm down, Luffy!" Came a shout from Shanks' crew, a few of the men forming a line with their arms across each others' shoulders. "Let's just have a good time!"

"Yeah, pirates always have a good time!"

"The sea is vast and there's lots of islands to explore!"

"And best of all, pirates have freedom!" Hazel smiled, imagining it all, while Luffy openly gaped at the image their words conjured.

"You guys, stop filling his head with crazy ideas." Shanks scolded, exasperated at his crew's antics.

"But it's true!"

"Come on, Cap'n! Let's take the kids with us just this once!"

"Yeah!" Luffy readily agreed, and Hazel even found herself nodding along in excitement. She still understood the captain's reasoning for not bringing them along, but one time couldn't hurt, right?

"Okay…" Hazel and Luffy looked at him in awe. "But two of you will have to stay behind…" The pirates' tone quickly changed after that.

"Sorry, kids, you've been beached! Let's drink!"

"Hey! I thought you guys were on my side!" Luffy yelled after them.

"Shanks that was mean…" Hazel pouted, pursing her lips in frustration.

"You kids're just too young. Maybe in 10 years, I'll give you a chance." Shanks said, perfectly calm in his response.

"Shanks! I'm telling you, I'm not a little kid!" Luffy continued to protest. Hazel figured it wasn't the time to bring up that he was only seven.

"Don't get upset now. Here, have some milk," Shanks offered, placing a full glass in front of Luffy.

"Oh boy, thanks!" The boy quickly began to chug it down, milk spilling over the sides of his cup.

"See?! A real pirate would never drink milk!" Shanks laughed at him, causing Hazel to pout again as he continued making fun of her brother. He was laying it on pretty thick today.

"That was a dirty trick!" Luffy yelled, turning away from the redhead. "Hmph! I'm getting tired of this, I even stabbed myself in the face so you'd take me with you."

"That wasn't a good idea either, Luffy!" Hazel scolded him, pulling on his ear slightly.

"Luffy," Came a calm voice, drawing the siblings' attention. "The captain's just doing what's best for everyone…"

"How do you figure, Mr. First Mate?"

"The safety of the entire crew and ship rests on his shoulders." Benn Beckman explained, blowing his cigarette smoke away from the kids' faces. "Being a pirate isn't all fun and games, you know. There's lots of duties, like pillaging, hostage-taking, heavy drinking, and swimming!"

"Those don't sound like actual duties…" Hazel muttered, raising an eyebrow.

"And the captain knows all about the dangers of the sea, too!" Beckman continued, ignoring her. "It can kill you in a thousand ways! It's not that he wants to crush your dream of becoming a pirate."

"Well, I don't believe it!" Luffy yelled. "Shanks just likes to make me look dumb!"

"Hey, Anchor!" Shanks yelled, then once he had their attention started guffawing.

"I told you!"

"Leave him alone, Shanks!"

"Captain Shanks!" Makino said as she came around the bar with a barrel of ale. "I'm glad to see you and your crew are enjoying yourselves!"

"Ho boy, I just love making fun of this kid…"

"Hm...maybe the lad's got a point…" Beckman muttered.

"Luffy! Hazel! Would you like something to eat?" Makino asked, chuckling at the group.

"Yeah!" Luffy lit up, Shanks' teasing swiftly forgotten. "Just put it on the treasure tab!"

"Treasure tab? Look boy, don't try to swindle the lady." Shanks teased, more lighthearted this time, as Luffy and Hazel sat down to wait for their lunch.

"I'm gonna become a pirate, find lots of treasure, and then I'll come back and pay her!" Luffy explained.

"And in the meantime, I do help out around here, you know!" Hazel added on, though she still wished she could do more to pay the woman back for everything she continued to do for them. Makino just giggled.

"We'll celebrate together when you return!" She dropped their plates off and went back to work, leaving the three to their meal.

"Shanks…" Luffy started, pulling on a hunk of meat with his teeth.

"Yeah, kid?"

"How much longer will you stay at this village?"

"Hm, let's see…" Shanks started, thinking seriously about the question. "We've been using this village as our base for about a year now. After two or three more voyages, we'll leave here for good and head North…"

"I see…" Luffy said, swallowing his food. "Two or three more trips, eh?" Hazel glanced sadly at the man, already missing him. This past year had been the best year of her life. "I'm gonna learn how to swim by the time you leave!" Luffy declared.

"That's good kid, do whatever you want." Shanks said, humoring him without paying much attention. Luffy was appeased, however, and continued eating everything within reach. Suddenly, the door to the bar flew open with a _bang_, kicked in by a tall bearded man with a top knot.

"Make way for the scourge of the mountains!" Hazel shifted in her seat, trying to keep attention off of her and her brother. It wasn't often that mountain bandits decided to venture into the village; there was no way to know what to expect from this encounter. "Heheh...so you call yourselves pirates, eh? First time I've seen pirates...you look like a sorry lot to me." He was only met with stares, and he made his way through the now dead silent bar. Sliding between Shanks and one of his crewmates, the man slammed his hand on the counter in front of Makino. "We're mountain bandits. Oh, don't wet yourselves. We're not here to bust up the place. Just sell us 10 barrels of beer and we'll only injure the bare minimum."

"I'm sorry…" Makino said, stiff as a board but not stepping down from the man's intense stare. "We just ran out of liquor."

"Hmm, that's strange," The mountain bandit looked around the room. "What're all these pirates drinking? Fruit juice?"

"It's true," Makino tried again. "I just served the last of it."

"I feel kinda guilty," Shanks spoke up, trying to lighten the atmosphere and taking the bandit's attention off of Makino. "I guess we drank up all the liquor, sorry about that. Why don't you have this? It's still unopened." He offered the man his bottle of beer, but the bandit just smashed it in his face. Glass and beer splashed over the redhead onto the floor, and Hazel and Luffy shielded themselves from the residual spray.

"What do you take me for? You can't make a fool out of me! What good is one bottle of beer?"

"Oh my...what a mess," Shanks said, staring dejectedly at the spilled liquid.

"Look at this," The bandit held up a wanted poster with his face on it reading "Higuma the Bear". "My head's worth 8,000,000 beli. I'm a wanted man. I've killed 56 people, most of them fools like you! Watch yourself, if you're fond of breathing! If you were smart, you'd sail away from here so I never have to see you again."

Instead of answering, Shanks merely bent over, stooping to pick up the pieces of glass left behind by the bottle of beer. "Sorry about this mess, Makino-san. Give me a rag and I'll clean it up."

"Uh, don't worry about it!" Higuma sneered down at the pirate captain. Drawing his sword, he swung it across the bar, shattering the glasses there and showering Shanks with more debris and liquid. Hazel peeked her head out from under the stool she'd hidden herself and Luffy under, staring in wide-eyed shock at the destruction the bandit had caused in such a short time.

"So you like to clean?" He smirked down at Shanks, wet and covered in glass. "That oughta keep you busy for a while. Farewell...cowards…" And he left. The bar remained silent for a few moments, before Makino came around the bar to check on Shanks.

"Captain, are you ok? Are you hurt?" She fussed.

"I'm fine, no harm done," Shanks waved her off, face breaking into a slow grin. His crew began to laugh, much to the children's surprise.

"Cap'n! He got you good!" Soon Shanks joined in their laughter, his guffaws echoing off the wooden walls.

"You think it's funny?!" Luffy shouted suddenly, startling everyone from their revelry. "He made you look like a weakling! Why didn't you fight him?! Sure, they outnumbered you, and maybe they looked pretty tough, but what kind of man lets himself be treated like that then laughs about it?! You're a disgrace to all pirates!"

"Luffy…" Hazel whispered, surprised by his outburst. He'd always looked up to Shanks. The man in question just gave the boy a patient smile, shaking his straw hat clean and placing it back on his head.

"Maybe when you grow up you'll understand, kid. He just got some beer on me, that's all. Needless killing doesn't make you a man." But Luffy would hear none of it, and he began stomping off. "Hey, where you going?" Shanks asked, grabbing the boy by the arm.

"Hmph! To go find a real role model!"

"Luffy!" Hazel said, louder now, appalled by his attitude. So Shanks didn't kick everyone's butt who was rude to him, so what? Luffy just continued to walk towards the door, ignoring everyone around him. And that was especially odd, considering what happened when he kept walking.

His arm stretched. Impossibly so. Extending from where Shanks still sat, perfectly still and holding Luffy's wrist, all the way to the middle of the bar where the boy now stood. Hazel let out a scream, the pirates all began to shout, and chaos descended on the bar as they took in this new development.

"His arm's stretching!" Shanks yelled. "Does this mean- Did he-?!"

"He couldn't have!"

"What's wrong with me?!" Luffy screamed, understandably freaking out.

"It's not here!" Lucky Roux yelled, opening a chest Shanks had left on the bar and finding it empty. "The Gum-Gum fruit we took from that enemy ship! Luffy!" He turned to the boy, holding up a picture of an odd purple fruit. "You didn't eat that fruit, did you?!"

"Yeah, I ate it for dessert! It didn't taste very good though…"

"Luffy! You ate it even though it didn't taste good?! What's wrong with you?!"

"I was hungry!"

"That was the Gum-Gum fruit!" Shanks yelled in Luffy's face. "A devil fruit! It's one of the secret treasures of the sea! If you eat it your entire body becomes like rubber, and you can never swim again!"

"WHAT?!" Luffy and Hazel both yelled, Luffy's eyes filling with tears as he absorbed this information.

"You idiot!"

* * *

It was definitely a weird thing to get used to. The first time Luffy fell out of a tree after eating the fruit, she'd about had a heart attack; but then he sat up, perfectly fine and asking for some food. The other new thing was bathing...Luffy had finally gotten to the point where he could take a bath on his own, but now they discovered he couldn't sit in the tub without practically collapsing beneath the water. This whole thing just made taking care of him more tiring, but Hazel did her best to take it all in stride.

The pirates had left the next day, once again childless, but with the craziness of what had happened, the kids barely noticed, going about their daily routines. Luffy had already decided he was happy with his new stretchy abilities, and Hazel felt with time she'd get used to them. She was, at the very least, grateful that they made him practically indestructible when it came to getting hit; it made pushing him out of bed in the morning less guilt-inducing for her.

Weeks passed with no sign of the Red-Hairs' return, and the kids found themselves in the odd position of being completely alone in Partys Bar with Makino, sitting at the counter with full glasses of milk.

"The pirates have been out at sea for a long time…" Luffy pouted, staring at his cup.

"Do you miss them, Luffy?" Makino asked, wiping down a glass.

"After the way those mountain bandits humiliated them?! Not at all!" Luffy set his head on the counter, chewing on the rim of his empty cup, dejected. "I really misjudged those guys! I thought they were brave and tough...but they're really just a bunch of wimps."

"Are you sure about that?" Makino asked, a patient smile on her face. "Maybe sometimes it takes more courage not to fight." Hazel nodded, agreeing with her. Some of the coolest characters were the ones who held back until they needed to fight, rather than just running straight into it.

"You just wouldn't understand! A real man has to stand up for himself, no matter what!"

"Is that right?" Makino said, playing along. "I guess I don't understand."

"That's right, you don't."

"Make way for the terror of the highlands." Came a voice from the door. Turning to look, the three were surprised to see Higuma the Bear in the bar once again. This guy sure liked to introduce himself in weird ways…

"No pirates today, eh? Smells better…" He said, making his men laugh. "We were in the area so we stopped by." He and his men sat at the tables, keeping well away from where the children were sat, and Higuma slammed his hand on the table. "What're you waiting for?" He snapped. "We're customers! Serve us drinks!"

With the alcohol flowing, it wasn't long before the bandits began to get rowdy. Raucous laughter and vulgar swearing filled the small space, but Hazel couldn't find a good opportunity to leave. The last thing she wanted was to draw attention to her or Luffy.

"Did you see the look on those pirates' faces?" One of the bandits asked, catching their attention. Hazel felt Luffy tense beside her.

"I broke a bottle over his head, and not one word of protest! How pathetic!" Higuma laughed. "I wanted to kill him. Cowards like that make me sick. Pirates are all talk."

"Take that back!"

"Huh?"

"Take back what you said about Shanks! He's not a coward!"

"Luffy, no!" Makino yelled, grabbing the boy by the arms in an effort to hold him back. Hazel stood in front of him to further block him from lunging at the bandit.

"STOP TALKING BAD ABOUT SHANKS!"

* * *

"Leave him alone!" Hazel struggled against the bandit's hold, trying to break free and stop Higuma from hurting her brother. The fight had moved into the street, and Makino had run off to find help, but there was no telling what could happen while they waited.

"You've got a strange body, boy. Our punches and kicks aren't hurting you at all." Higuma mused, holding Luffy up by the front of his shirt as he stretched the boy's cheek.

"Damn you! You'd better take it back! You jerk!" Luffy continued trying to punch the bandit, but was unable to reach.

"There sure are some strange creatures in the world, eh Rubber Boy?" Higuma let go of Luffy's shirt, throwing him at the ground.

"Luffy!"

"Damn you! I'll make you sorry for this!" Luffy yelled, now missing a tooth.

"I've discovered a new life form...Maybe I'll sell you to a freak show, I bet they'll pay good money for you." Luffy picked up a hunk of wood, though Hazel didn't see where he'd gotten it from, and ran at the bandit with a yell. Higuma just raised his foot, slamming Luffy's head into the ground. "You stubborn little brat! I was just drinking and talking to my men! I didn't say anything to offend you!"

"Yes you did!" Luffy yelled from beneath the man's shoe. "You'd better apologize! Move your foot! You stinking mountain ape!"

"Luffy! Let him go you slimy son of a bitch!" Hazel yelled, the grip around her shoulders getting tighter as she kicked and flailed against the bandit holding her hostage.

"This one's got a mouth on her…" Higuma sneered, glancing Hazel's way.

"Let them go!" Hazel turned her head towards the sound, seeing the mayor and Makino standing there, staring at them in worry. "Please. I don't know what they did, and I have no intention of fighting you people, but if it's money you want, you'll get it!" Woop Slap pronounced, bowing his head. "Just don't hurt those kids!"

"Mayor!"

"Nice try, old man! You know how the world works. But I'm afraid it's too late, no one can save these brats now. They've done the unpardonable. This one attacked me," Higuma stomped on Luffy's head. "They called me names. I can't take that from this little rubber-spined freak!"

"You started this, bandit!" Luffy ground out from beneath the man's shoe. "You mountain macaque!"

"That does it, I'm not gonna sell you...I'm gonna kill you." Higuma drew his sword, and Hazel struggled somehow harder than before.

"LUFFY!"

"Nobody came to greet us at the harbor. I was wondering what was going on…" Shanks stepped in front of Makino and the mayor, a calm smile fixed on his face. "Oh, it's you mountain bandits again!"

"Captain Shanks!"

"Shanks…" Hazel whispered, trying and failing to hold back tears.

"Luffy! I thought your punch was as powerful as a pistol!"

"Not now, Captain!" Luffy yelled back.

"Hmph! You pirates are still here? Taking a break from your cleaning duties? I don't know what you want, but you'd better back off before you get hurt. Come any closer, and we'll have to kill you...cowards."

"Didn't you hear him?" Another bandit laughed, cocking his pistol and pointing it straight at Shanks' head. "Don't come any closer, or I'll blow your head off!"

"You're putting your life on the line by pointing that at me," Shanks told him matter-of-factly, calm smile never wavering.

"Huh? What are you talking about?"

"I'm saying those aren't for threatening people!"

**BANG!**

Hazel gasped as the bandit fell dead to the ground at Lucky Roux's feet, the large man's pistol still smoking as he munched on a big hunk of meat. Cries of protest and fear rose up from the bandits.

"What've you done?! That wasn't fair!"

"Fair? You're not dealing with saints here," Benn Beckman deadpanned.

"You're looking at pirates," Shanks said, bracing himself for a fight.

"This was none of your business!" Another bandit shouted.

"Listen up," Shanks commanded the entire street, all eyes on him as he spoke. "You can pour drinks on me, you can throw food at me, you can even spit on me. I'll just laugh that stuff off. But no matter the reason, no one hurts my friends!"

"Friend?!" Hazel turned her head towards Luffy, slipping out of the bandit's grasp now that he was thoroughly distracted. She ran over to the boy, crouching low to the ground to avoid drawing Higuma's attention, and began pulling at his body to try and get him free.

"Nice speech! Very intimidating!" Higuma laughed, not noticing the girl's still unsuccessful actions. "You pirates spend your time floating around in your little ships, and you think you can stand up to mountain bandits?! Don't make me laugh! Kill them!" The bandits took off towards the pirates, swords swinging as they went.

"I'll take care of this, Cap'n." Beckman snuffed out his cigarette between one of the bandit's eyes, sending him to the ground with a scream. "Next…" The group kept coming, paying no mind to their fallen comrade, and Beckman swung back his rifle, hitting the bandits with a loud _thwack_! Before Hazel could blink, all the men had been taken out, and Higuma was the only bandit left standing. Now if only she could get Luffy out - so far, she'd only succeeded in stretching him!

"You were saying something about mountain bandits and pirates?" Benn Beckman mocked, lighting a new cigarette. "If you wanna fight us, you'd better bring a battleship." Hazel and Luffy stared in awe; Shanks' crew was stronger than they could've ever imagined.

"But-! These brats started it!" Higuma yelled.

"Doesn't matter," Shanks stared him down. "You _are_ a wanted man."

"Damn it!" Higuma sneered, pulling a small black ball from his shirt and throwing it to the ground. Smoke billowed up around him and the siblings, and through her coughing she could feel someone grab her shirt, dragging her away.

"Hey, let us go!" She yelled, kicking at Higuma the best she could. He had one kid under each arm, taking off toward the sea. He threw the two into a small fishing boat, and set off for the middle of the bay.

"Hahaha! What a brilliant escape! Nobody would ever expect a mountain bandit to hide out at sea! I brought you two along as a hostage, but I no longer have a use for you! I've already killed 56 people who were foolish enough to make me mad, what's a couple more?" Hazel felt her breath hitch; how the hell were they going to get out of this?!

"Damn you! You stupid ape! I hope you die!" Luffy yelled, attempting once again to punch the mountain bandit; but before he could land a hit, Higuma thrust his foot out, kicking the small boy off the boat.

"LUFFY!" Hazel yelled, immediately jumping into the water after him. She managed to hook her arms underneath his small body, surprised at how heavy he was this deep in the water. His kicking and flailing wasn't helping her keep hold of him, but she desperately clung to him as best she could, praying to anything that might listen that she not let go.

Higuma stood on his boat, laughing at their plight, when a shadow loomed behind him. Hazel's eyes widened at the sight of a large sea monster, at least as big as their house, glaring at the bandit with one large red eye. With a single chomp, the bandit was gone, stuck deep inside the monster's belly. The sea monster turned its gaze to the flailing and splashing, eyeing up the easy meal. It barrelled towards them, mouth opening for another bite, and Hazel heard screaming. Was that her, or was it Luffy? Was it both?

Right before the monster bit down, something pushed her out of the way. She jolted as her fingers left Luffy, blinking sea water out of her eyes as she looked for him. Hazel came up short and gasped as her eyes landed on what had pushed her. Shanks was there in the water, arm around her brother, keeping him afloat. The sea monster glared at him, and the man glared right back, and somehow this was enough to send the fish on its way. But that wasn't the most shocking thing.

"Luffy, Hazel, I'm sorry. Makino-san told me everything. You stood up for us." Luffy clung to his shirt, sniffling while tears fell freely from his eyes. Hazel tread water next to them, eyes wide, and she couldn't tell if the salt water on her face was just the sea, or if she was crying as well. "Hey, don't cry! You're a tough guy, remember?"

"B-but Shanks...your arm!"

Sure enough, where Shanks' left arm had once been was now a bloody stump, bitten clean off by the sea monster during their rescue. "It's only an arm, not a big deal. I'm just glad you both are ok." Luffy only cried harder, and Hazel remained calm just long enough to help get them to shore, before she too devolved into a puddle of tears.

* * *

Luffy stopped asking Shanks to take them with him after that, finally understanding the dangers he'd warned about. He'd also gained a newfound respect and appreciation for the man; both siblings had. They owed him their life.

"So you won't be coming back after this voyage?!" Luffy asked. He and Hazel had come to say their goodbyes, but hadn't quite realized this was _goodbye_ goodbye.

"That's right," Shanks looked out over the harbor, cloak clutched tight around his stump of a shoulder. "We've been using this harbor as a base of operations for a long time now, maybe too long. Are you sad?"

"Yeah I'm sad, but I won't ask you to take me with you!" Luffy answered, smiling. "I've decided to become a pirate on my own! I've already got my first crew member!" Hazel beamed, pointing to herself. They'd wait until they were older, of course, but she couldn't wait to set sail with him someday.

"It wouldn't do you any good, you're still too little!" Shanks teased, sticking his tongue out. "There's no way you two can become pirates!"

"Oh yes we will!" Luffy yelled, determination shining through him. "One day, I'll have a ship and crew that's better than yours! And we'll have the biggest horde of treasure in the world! I'M GONNA BE KING OF THE PIRATES!"

Hazel stared at her brother in awe, warmth settling in her gut at the declaration. She knew, could already tell, that Luffy was 100% telling the truth. He _would_ be King of the Pirates...and she was going to map that journey with him.

"Hmm...you're gonna be better than us, huh?" Shanks said, smiling without a hint of mockery. He placed his hand on the straw hat upon his head, taking it off. "Well then, do me a favor…" He plopped the hat onto Luffy's head, hiding the tears forming in Luffy's eyes from view. "Keep this hat safe for me? This hat means a lot to me. Promise that you'll give it back to me someday, when you've become a great pirate." And with that the man turned away, his crew raised anchor, and they set sail once more.

* * *

**Present**

* * *

"YOU FIXED IT!" Luffy yelled, holding his hat in the air with pride. Zoro had fallen asleep behind him, probably just tired from his fight with the Buggy Pirates, but Hazel liked to think the story was just that relaxing; it was better than thinking it was so boring it'd put him to sleep.

"It's a temporary fix, I just sewed up the holes," Nami explained, putting away her tools. "It'll be fine if you aren't too rough with it."

"Thanks! That hat was full of holes!" Luffy said, poking at the straw. "And now you can't even tell! It's all-!" His finger went straight through the top. "Oops!"

"You don't listen!" Nami yelled, poking him with her sewing needle.

"Ow! You stabbed me with that needle!"

"That's the only way I can hurt you!"

"Hmm...you're right!" Hazel shook her head, exhausted. She was about to settle back for a nap herself, when Zoro woke up.

"Cut the racket, I can't sleep!" He snapped, rubbing his eyes. "And I'm starving. Hey!" He yelled to Nami, who'd moved back to her own ship. "Share some of your rations with us!"

"What's wrong with you guys? Don't you know anything about seamanship? You don't even have any food or water! You have to respect the sea!"

"To be fair," Hazel yawned, leaning against the hull of their dinghy. "We did have food, it was just eaten by a whirlpool." Nami and Zoro gave her a weird look, to which she just shrugged in answer. She didn't think she'd ever get over that, if she was being honest.

"Hey, I see something!" Luffy shouted, peering into the distance. Nami tossed over some bread with a sigh.

"How have you idiots survived this long?"

"We manage." Zoro said with a grin, mouth full. Hazel grinned along with him, nibbling on her own piece of bread while fighting the sleep that threatened to take over. She vaguely heard Luffy say something about an island, but her attention was drifting in and out.

"Forget it," Nami said. "It looks uninhabited. Hold your course- Hey come back!" She shouted, as Luffy rowed their dinghy towards the island he'd seen, leaving the orange-haired girl alone.

"Maybe there's someone there who'll join our crew!"

"Maybe you can find some food. But Nami's right, we're unprepared."

"Again, I would like to point out that we _were_ prepared," Hazel yawned again. "But nature had other plans."

"Oi," Hazel glanced at the swordsman through tired eyes, blinking slowly at the concerned expression on his face. "If you're that tired, you should sleep. You got into a fight too, right?"

"I did," She nodded. "But I didn't really get injured; just sore. I'll be alright." She was cut off by another yawn.

"A fight's a fight regardless of how injured you are. Your body still needs to recover," He said, leaning back on his arms and closing his eyes.

"Strangely wise, coming from you, though you're not wrong…" She trailed off. "Still though, one of us should probably stay awake, and you're much worse off than I am. I just got hit a few times, but your guts nearly fell out. We are not the same." Zoro rolled his eyes.

"Just go to sleep, you crazy woman. The world's not gonna fall apart if you do." Hazel just stared at him, feeling oddly like a child being scolded.

"But-!" She yawned once again, bigger and louder this time, and by the smirk on Zoro's tanned face, she could tell she wasn't winning this one. "Fine! But wake me up the second something interesting happens!"

"Yeah, yeah…" The swordsman waved her off, and they both settled into an easy sleep, oblivious to the world around them.

And so it was that hours later, Luffy woke her up yelling about the adventure he and Nami'd had on a deserted island; an adventure that she had missed out on completely. She wanted to be mad, after all how could she write Luffy's adventure if she slept through parts of it? But she felt better, and when she glanced at the smirk on Zoro's face, she could tell he knew it too.

Damn him.

* * *

**Thanks again everyone for reading! Also a note: I AM using the Funimation version of Binks' Sake (AKA Binks' Brew) simply because it actually rhymes in English, and I think it'll flow better when written in here. Also, how do y'all feel about the longer chapters? It's been surprisingly easy to just make them super long so far, but if you'd prefer them shorter I can shorten them up! I'd love to get some feedback from you all! See you next time!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Hey everyone! So sorry for the long wait, things have been pretty crazy (as I'm sure you all know), and it's been a bit hard mentally to write during all this. I also, admittedly, wasn't super excited to write Syrup Village, but I finally finished it, and while I do wish it could be a bit better (personally), I'm still pretty happy with how it turned out! This chapter is a bit shorter than normal, but that's because originally this chapter was a monster, so I split it! So you're getting a double-update with slightly shorter chapters, rather than one humongously long chapter! Hooray! Hope you enjoy! (Almost forgot to mention! I did some editing of earlier chapters to fix up some language issues, and ended up switching all the devil fruits and related attacks to the English version, just to help it make better sense in my head while I was writing it. Nothing changed content-wise, though, so no need to go back and reread anything! Thanks!)**

* * *

"We're being rash," Nami said suddenly, breaking the silence that had built up after breakfast. The other three looked up from their activities; Zoro from his nap, Luffy from the spiraled figurehead of their little dinghy, and Hazel from her notebook, filled with jumbled notes and crossed out tidbits from Luffy and Nami's recounted solo adventure the day before.

"Why?" Luffy asked.

"We can't sail the Grand Line like this!" Nami insisted, looking over her map.

"You're right!" Luffy readily agreed, "That shrub man gave us a lot of fruit, but we need meat to keep our strength up!"

"Shrub man? I thought you said he was stuck in a chest!" Hazel piped up, furiously going over her notes.

"He was!"

"Then how is he a shrub man?"

"Cause he looked like a shrub!"

"Argh!" Hazel growled, digging her pencil so hard into the paper that the lead broke. "That's the last time I take an impromptu nap! _You_ were supposed to wake me up!" She yelled, pointing the broken pencil at the swordsman behind her. Said swordsman merely shrugged, stretching his shoulders, and nudging her away from where she'd been leaning on him. Hazel continued to glare at him before settling back against him. He'd complained the first time she did it, but according to Hazel there wasn't enough room for them both to spread out; and besides, a sleeping Zoro made for a good backrest.

"I'm not talking about food!" Nami yelled, interrupting Hazel's grumbling.

"She's right," Zoro said, adjusting to make himself more comfortable, leaning back against the hull of the dinghy. "We don't have a drop of beer aboard."

"I'm not talking about booze either!" Hazel winced at her volume; it was going to be a long day if they were already starting off like this. "We're headed for the Grand Line - the most dangerous sea lane in the world! And don't forget, the most successful pirates in the world are after the One Piece too! And their ships are big and sturdy…" The navigator trailed off, looking over the two little boats tied together by a rough piece of rope. "Ours are little tubs, and we don't even have a crew. If we go on like this, we'll never survive this foolhardy venture."

"So what should we do?" Luffy asked, in a surprising moment of clarity.

"We're going to plan ahead and prepare! There's a village a little south of here, our first priority is to acquire a proper vessel."

"And eat meat!"

Hazel shook her head with a chuckle at her brother's response, and Nami's subsequent scowl, before turning back to her notebook. She'd have to bother Nami later about the details of their adventure with "Shrub Man", as Luffy had taken to calling him. When she'd pressed the boy for details the night before, he'd gotten distracted after just about every sentence, hence the jumbled mess her notes had become. Hazel chewed the inside of her cheek as she tried to make sense of the whole thing.

"You still bothered by that? You're not gonna be able to tag along every time, you know," Zoro piped up from beside her, peeping one eye open to glance at her chicken scratch.

"Yeah, yeah, I know that...I just...I haven't missed anything before, ya know?" He eyed her carefully.

"Ever?"

"Never," Hazel said, shaking her head for emphasis. "It's always been the two of us against the world. I knew it'd happen eventually, I just didn't expect his first adventure without me to be so...weird," she finished, shrugging her shoulders. "Makes it really hard to write about," Hazel chuckled, tucking a purple curl behind her ear, along with her still unsharpened pencil. Zoro just grunted in response.

"I guess...admit it though, you felt better after a good nap."

"Yeah ok, wipe that smirk off your face, hotshot," Hazel laughed, tearing a corner off her page and tossing it at his nose. She laughed harder when he glared, his nose twitching at the tickling piece of paper. Her laughter was stifled, however, when he pushed her off of him. "Hey, you jerk-!"

"Land!" Luffy shouted, interrupting the pair as he pointed to an island in the distance. As he and Zoro rowed up to the beach, Hazel jotted down a quick shopping list. Nami'd said there was a village here, and they were running low on more than just food. She packed away her writing supplies when she was done, just in time for them to disembark. "What do you know? There really is an island here!" Luffy exclaimed, replacing his oar back in its place.

"Of course there is," Nami said from the shore. "It's right here on the map." Hazel jumped onto the beach, squinting at the map Nami held in her hand. It just looked like a bunch of colors to her.

"I'll take your word for it," Hazel said, stretching.

"You can't even read a map?" Nami asked, eyes wide in horror. "You guys are hopeless!"

"Meh," Hazel shrugged. "That's what you're here for, isn't it?" She just smiled as the orange-haired navigator rolled her eyes.

"And there's a village here?" Luffy interrupted, coming to stand by the two women.

"Yeah, but it looks pretty small."

"We may not have much luck finding a ship here, but we should look for some basic supplies anyway. _Someone_ used up all my bandages, and if things continue to go the way they have been, we're definitely gonna need more." Nami nodded as said "someone" finally stepped onto the beach.

"Ahhh, solid ground at last!" Zoro yawned, stretching his back with a loud pop.

"What? You slept the whole way," Luffy teased, though luckily for him Zoro chose to ignore him and instead focus on four figures peeking over the cliffside.

"So, what do you think is up with those guys?" He asked, pointing at the quartet watching them. Well, it _was_ a quartet; three little bodies swiftly ran away at Zoro's pointing, leaving the fourth behind to scream at them not to run away. Hazel crossed her arms, neither impressed nor worried. Realizing his comrades weren't going to return, the last onlooker, a boy with an impressively long nose, sprinted to stand in front of the pirates, arms crossed and chest out in a way that told Hazel he was attempting to appear larger and more imposing. All she could do was raise a brow in annoyance.

"I am the notorious Captain Usopp! Feared pirate and ruler of this village!" He shouted, barely six-feet away from the pirate crew. "So you'd better think twice before you invade! I have 80 million men poised to stop you."

"Liar." Nami said simply, causing the boy to scream, clutching his head.

"Damn! She saw right through me!"

"See? I knew it!"

"Damn! I admitted I lied! She's a master of interrogation!" Luffy began to laugh at the poor boy's plight.

"You're funny!" The rubber-boy laughed, clutching his stomach.

"Hey! Are you laughing at me?!" The other boy grew indignant, snapping out of his shocked state and pointing at his own chest. "I'm a proud man! Which is why they call me 'Proud Captain Usopp'!" Something about this boy seemed familiar to Hazel, in a strangely annoying way, but she couldn't quite place it. It was a ridiculous idea anyway; she'd obviously never met this "Usopp" kid before.

As she was contemplating her sudden annoyance at the whole situation, a rather startling noise sounded from her captain's stomach. All eyes swung to Luffy, who merely rubbed his stomach with a smile on his face.

"Hey, Usopp, you got any meat around here?"

* * *

"Really? You're looking for a crew?" Usopp asked less than an hour later, sitting at the head of the table in a small restaurant in the village. "Crewmen and a bigger ship?"

"That's right!" Luffy answered around a mouthful of meat.

"Wow, what a great adventure!" Usopp grinned. "Well, you won't find any galleons here in town, but there is a place you can go."

"Where?" Nami asked, and Hazel also looked to him in question. She was honestly surprised anywhere on this small island could even possibly provide something larger than what they already had.

"That huge mansion that stands out like a sore thumb, that's where!"

"Mansion?" Hazel asked; she hadn't seen any mansion, but then again she'd been so focused on the feeling that she knew this kid from somewhere that she'd barely paid any attention to where they'd been going. She'd nearly tripped over Zoro twice, and Nami had threatened to charge her 10,000 beli just for running into her on the way there.

"The owner of the mansion is a young girl," Usopp started, nodding at Hazel. "And she's bedridden."

"Hmm…" Nami hummed. "How did she become the owner of a mansion?"

"More meat please!" Luffy interrupted suddenly, followed by Zoro's shout for more beer.

"Are you guys listening to my story?!" Usopp snapped, causing Hazel to huff out a laugh. "About a year ago, both the poor girl's parents got sick and died," he continued. "They left her with a huge inheritance, a mansion, and a dozen servants. She's rich and lives in luxury, but no one's more unfortunate than her," he finished, leaning back in his chair. The table was silent for a moment as everyone took in his story.

"Forget it," Nami said suddenly, slamming her hand on the table. "We're not gonna find a ship here. Let's go find another town."

"Agreed," Hazel piped up from her end of the table. If that was the only way they could get a ship here, she couldn't in good conscience follow up on it.

"Ok, I guess we can spare the time; and I got a bellyful of meat!" Luffy agreed, easily pleased. "Let's grab some supplies and go!"

"By the way…" Usopp began, pulling Luffy's attention back to him. "You said you were looking for crewmen…"

"That's right."

"I'm your man! I'll be your captain!" The pirates exchanged a quick look around the table.

"No thanks," they said in unison, hanging their heads over the table.

"Don't you wanna think it over?!"

"We've got a captain. Sorry kid," Hazel said with a smirk. Usopp just gave a shaky laugh, before his eyes caught the clock and widened at the time.

"Ah, time to go! I just remembered I have something to do! Uhh, I have lots of influence here, so eat and drink as much as you want!" And out the door he went, leaving the pirates to stare after him in confusion.

"What a strange kid…" Hazel muttered while Luffy called for more food and drink. Well, Usopp had said to have as much as they wanted after all; they couldn't very well let this opportunity go to waste…Hazel didn't often think of herself as a messy eater, but the way Nami's eyes widened in horror as she practically inhaled an entire bowl of noodles had her second guessing herself.

They had finally all finished eating, relaxing back in their seats, when the door to the restaurant slammed open, revealing three small boys. Three _familiar_ small boys.

"Usopp's Pirates are here!" They shouted, staring at their table.

"Who're they?" Nami asked.

"Beats me," Luffy answered, sipping some tea.

"If I remember right, they were three of Usopp's '80 million men'," Hazel supplied, noticing the boys' eyes widen as they realized their captain was no longer there.

"Hey, where's the captain?" One of the boys asked, while another muttered something under his breath that Hazel didn't quite catch. "Hey, you pirates!"

"What'd you do with our captain?!"

"Give him back!" The three each raised tiny wooden swords, staring the four down from the end of the table.

"Aww, aren't you cute…" Hazel muttered so no one could hear.

"Ahh that meat was delicious!" Luffy shouted, startling the kids. They stared up at him with comically large eyes, taking in the sight of his rather round belly.

"Meat?!"

"The captain! He couldn't have…" Hazel looked away to hide her laughter. Oh, this was too precious.

"If you're looking for your captain…" Zoro started, a menacing tone to his voice as he drew the kids' attention.

"What?! What did you do to him?!"

"We ate him!" Zoro grinned, accompanied by Hazel making a scary face for emphasis. She couldn't help her grin when the children screamed, and the way they yelled "OGRESS!" at Nami made her burst into loud laughter.

"WHY ARE YOU LOOKING AT ME?!" Their navigator yelled, not so surprisingly being scarier to the boys than anything the other two did. "It's not funny!" She continued shouting, scolding the swordsman and record-keeper who were still laughing so hard their sides hurt.

"Oh man, those poor kids," Hazel said, getting out her last few chuckles as the three boys finally calmed down. "We're just kidding, your captain said he had something to do, so he left." Nami nodded.

"Yeah, he said 'time to go' and ran off."

"'Time to go?'"

"That's what he said, then he left," Zoro reiterated.

"It was probably time for him to go to the mansion," the boy in the middle (who looked suspiciously like a pepper) piped up. In fact, if Hazel thought about it, they all looked like some kind of vegetable. Weird.

"The mansion where the sick girl lives?" Nami asked.

"Yeah," Carrot answered.

"Why would he go there?" Luffy asked.

"To tell lies!" Carrot answered once again, with a big smile on his face.

"That's not very nice."

"Yes it is! It's _very_ nice, right?" Pepper insisted, followed by Onion's confirmation that it was great.

"Huh?"

"Luffy, you're not exactly the best judge of whether something's nice or not," Hazel said, remembering all the times she'd scolded him for being rude.

"Hey! I'm nice!" Hazel just stuck her tongue out at him.

"It's very nice!" One of the boys piped up. "The girl who lives there has been so sad and depressed ever since her parents died, so Captain goes to visit her and tell lies to cheer her up, because Captain's the best at telling lies!"

"Hey, he is a nice guy!" Luffy exclaimed.

"He makes up stories to cheer her up?" Nami asked. "And he's been doing it for the past year?"

"That's right!" Pepper confirmed.

"That's what I like about the captain, he's a meddler!" Carrot told them.

"I like the captain because he's so bossy!" Pepper added.

"I like the captain because he's so boastful!" Onion finished.

"Hmm...he's sure got a lot of good qualities…" Zoro muttered. Hazel only smiled at the three. She didn't necessarily see those as _great_ qualities, but these boys clearly adored their friend.

"Then the girl's spirits must not be too low," Luffy stated rather than asking.

"That's right! Thanks to the captain!"

"Well, that settles it!" Luffy exclaimed, standing up from the table. "Let's go ask her to give us a ship!"

"But we already decided against that idea!" Nami protested, and Hazel found herself torn.

"Well, maybe we can go visit her and gauge her spirits for ourselves? There's no harm in asking anyway…" She tried to reason. She didn't want to take advantage of someone who was sick, but they _did_ need a ship…

"Come on, let's go!" At any rate, Luffy had already made up his mind either way, and there would be no convincing him otherwise at this point. So, Hazel slipped out of her seat after him, following her brother out the door without waiting for her crewmates. They'd be along soon, after all.

* * *

"Hey you! Give us a ship!" Luffy shouted at the gate when they came upon the mansion.

"Uhh, Luff? I don't think they can hear you from here…"

"Ok, then let's go in!" He said, climbing over the gate.

"Ever hear of knocking?" The Usopp Pirates asked, having come along to show them the way.

"There's no stopping him now…" Nami groaned, face in her palm.

"I guess we'll have to go with him," Zoro said.

"You say this as though there'd ever be any other outcome…" Hazel muttered, trying her best to shimmy up the gate after Luffy. By the time she reached the top her arms were burning, but she easily made the jump to the ground on the other side. Before following Luffy, she turned back to the gate, fiddling with the latch for a moment before it fell open, allowing the rest of their group entrance. They walked around the perimeter of the mansion, surprisingly running into no security, and it wasn't long before they heard Usopp's voice, along with light, tinkling laughter.

"Hahaha, but what did you do with the goldfish?" A feminine voice asked as they approached.

"I chopped it up and took it to a land of little people! They're still eating it to this day!" Coming around the corner, they spotted Usopp leaning against a tree, a young blonde girl leaning out a window to listen to his story. "And after such a glorious feat, the people called out to me-"

"Captain!"

"That's right, they called me-Ah! What are you guys doing here?!" He shouted, alerted by Onion's shout.

"Who are they?" The girl asked.

"You must be the mistress of this place!" Luffy stated before Usopp slung his arm across his shoulders.

"Oh, they heard of my reputation from afar, and came to seek me out. They're the newest members of my crew."

"Say what?" Hazel snarked.

"Yeah," Luffy answered. "Hey, that's not right! I have a favor to ask of you!"

"A favor? To ask of me?" The girl seemed curious, which Hazel took as a good sign. She at least didn't seem upset about being asked.

"Yeah! We want a big, sturdy ship!"

"What is the meaning of this?!" The group whirled around, spotting what appeared to be a butler coming towards them. "Do you realize you're trespassing?!"

"Klahadore…" The girl said softly as the butler came closer to the window.

"What's his problem?" Luffy asked.

"Trespassing, apparently," Hazel answered.

"You see, these people, they're-" The girl started, but was quickly cut off by her butler.

"Save your excuses for later," That caused Hazel to raise her eyebrow in alarm. Just who was in charge here? "You must all go - immediately. Or do you have some business here?"

"I want a big, sturdy ship!" Luffy repeated, grin wide on his face.

"I can't help you." Hazel and Zoro alternated patting a dejected Luffy's back. "You...you're Usopp, aren't you?" The butler asked, having noticed the boy who'd been trying not to draw attention to himself. "Your reputation precedes you...you're the talk of the village." This didn't sound good.

"Uh, thanks! Call me 'Captain Usopp', if you please! But really, there's no need for flattery!" Hazel had to fight the urge to roll her eyes.

"The guards…" Klahadore continued. "They've reported seeing you lurking around the estate. Do you have any business being here?"

"Well...yes, I do," Usopp answered. "I saw a legendary mole enter this estate. I'm trying to capture him!" Now Hazel had to fight the urge to facepalm.

"You've a gift for deceit," Klahadore huffed. "I've also heard stories of your father."

"What?"

"You're the filthy son of a pirate. I wouldn't put anything past you. Stay away from Mistress Kaya."

"Wow, his father's a pirate?"

"Luffy, hush…" Hazel scolded, tension filling the air at the butler's accusation.

"A filthy pirate…?" Usopp muttered, anger showing clear on his face.

"You and Mistress Kaya are from completely different worlds," Klahadore continued. "Is it money you're after? How much do you want?"

"You've gone too far, Klahadore!" The girl, Kaya, snapped from the window. "You owe Usopp-san an apology!"

"Mistress Kaya, why should I apologize to this trash? I'm only speaking the truth!" The butler turned back to the seething Usopp, pushing up his glasses with the heel of his hand. "But I do feel sorry for you. Your treasure-crazed, idiot father _did_ abandon you."

"Klahadore!"

Suddenly, something clicked for Hazel, and she suddenly realized why Usopp seemed so familiar to her. A rage of her own filled her at Klahadore's words, and she felt herself grabbing Luffy's wrist to steady herself. He barely spared her a glance, too focused on what was happening in front of them.

"Stop bad-mouthing my father!" Usopp yelled, rage filling his face.

"What are you getting so worked up about?" The butler continued to egg him on. "Why not just fabricate some of your outrageous lies about your father? Just say he's really a merchant, or that he's not your real father, or perhaps-"

"SHUT UP!" Usopp snapped, punching the man across the face and knocking him to the ground.

"Captain!"

Hazel and the others just stood, watching in tense silence as events unfolded. Klahadore fixed his glasses once again, continuing to add fuel to Usopp's fire.

"See how he is? His first instinct is violence! He's an animal - like his father!"

"Shut up! I'm proud that my father is a pirate! I'm proud that he's a brave warrior of the sea!" Hazel bit back the remark brewing in her head at that. "You're right, I do make up stories, but there's one thing I'll never lie about! I'll never lie about my pirate heritage! I'm the son of a pirate!"

"Hey, wait a minute!" Luffy said suddenly, startling Hazel. "Now I remember!"

"Did it click for you too?" Hazel asked him through grit teeth. Luffy finally seemed to take notice of her hand clamped around his wrist, but rather than commenting on it, he chose to adjust his arm and grip her hand instead. She spared him a quick, tense smile, but they were quickly distracted once again by the butler's horrid remarks.

"A pirate, a 'brave warrior of the sea'? That's a deceitful way to twist the truth," the butler smirked, fixing his glasses yet again. Didn't he have any that fit? "Nonetheless, your behavior is indisputable proof of your ruffian heritage. Lie all you want, but faced with difficulty, your first recourse is violence." He stood up, brushing himself off. "And I know you are only kind to Miss Kaya because you're after her."

"What?! I-"

"I'm onto your scheme, you scalawag! You're trash like your pirate father!"

"That's enough!" Usopp shouted, grabbing hold of the butler's collar.

"Stop, Usopp-san!" Kaya shouted from her window. "Please, no more violence!" The girl was near tears as Usopp paused in his movements, glancing back her way. "Klahadore's not a bad person...he takes care of me. He only wants what's best for me, he just...went too far…"

"Leave the grounds…" Klahadore commanded, slapping the boy's hand off his collar. "This is no place for a ruffian like you! Never come to this estate again!"

"Fine, have it your way…" Usopp started, turning towards the gate. "I'm leaving, and I'm never coming back!"

"Captain…"

"Usopp-san…"

"Stupid smelly butt-ler!" Carrot yelled. "The captain's a great guy!"

"Yeah Stupid-head!"

"Stupid-head!"

"Stupid-head!"

"You too, Luffy?" Zoro commented, bonking Luffy on the head. Klahadore glared down at the trio, and they all ran screaming back to hide behind Nami and Hazel. Meanwhile, Zoro had to hold a squirming Luffy back, as he yelled at the butler to come fight him. "Easy, Luffy!"

"Get off this property at once!" Klahadore yelled, and despite Luffy's protests, they listened, following Usopp's path out of the gate. As they made their way down the road, they found a spot near a wooden fence to sit and regroup. Luffy apparently had other plans, though, as he kept walking.

"Don't feel like hanging out with us?" Hazel asked, already having guessed at his goal.

"I'll be back later!" He said, waving her off as he continued down the street. Hazel just shrugged, plopping down next to Zoro and leaning back against the fence posts. She closed her eyes, the cool breeze doing wonders for her mood, and allowed her thoughts to take over.

Usopp was Yasopp's son. It was pretty obvious to her, now that she thought about it, and it explained why he felt so familiar. That old deadbeat had yapped about him enough she practically felt like she knew him already. Of course, she had to take anything he'd said with a grain of salt considering how long it'd been since he'd seen his kid.

And that was another thing that, for some reason she couldn't figure out, bothered Hazel. Usopp was...proud? He was proud of his dad for abandoning him as a child to go off gallivanting around the world. Hazel had spent so long being _angry_ at Yasopp on Usopp's behalf that to now have him be _proud_ was...she couldn't really process it. Did he not realize the severity of the situation? And where was his mom? Yasopp had always mentioned being married, but there'd been no mention so far of Usopp's mother.

Should she talk to him about it? Try to make him understand? _No_, she decided instantly. That wouldn't be fair to him. Did she even have a right to be angry about it anymore, if Usopp himself wasn't? This was all giving her a headache…

Actually, now that she thought about it, maybe that was the stench. They needed to get a ship soon, and new clothes. She hadn't been able to shower or change since they left Foosha Village, and all her clothes were now sitting at the bottom of a whirlpool. She could've sworn her shirt used to have white stripes, not this weird yellowish color. No wonder Nami stayed on her boat this whole time, the three of them were disgusting!

"Oi! Stop looking at me like that!" Zoro snapped her out of her thought process. She stared at him in surprise, wide gray eyes taking in his disgruntled face. "What's your problem?" Hazel blinked, relieving some of the tension that'd built in her forehead.

"We're gross," she stated, matter-of-factly. Zoro just raised an eyebrow in confusion.

"Huh? I'm good for at least another day or two…"

"That's...wow, that actually makes me feel better about my own current hygiene. You realize you were tied to that post in Shells Town for _nine days_ before we saved your ass, right? That's nine days on top of the…" She paused for a second to count, "what, three or four days since you've joined us? And you're trying to tell me you not only _can_ wait another day or two before showering, but actually think it's _ok if you wait_?! I suddenly feel like a bar of soap next to you, thank you for that!"

"Jeez, alright I get it," Zoro said, rolling his eyes at her. "It has to wait until we have a chance to shower anyway, though, so just keep on enjoying my stench." He grinned at Hazel's glare, and the violet-haired woman imagined all kinds of scenarios where she was attacking him with a hose. Strangely enough though, she did feel better.

"I wonder where Luffy went…" Nami asked suddenly, drawing the two's attention.

"Who knows? Maybe he went after the 'captain'." Zoro offered as an explanation. Hazel nodded, having already figured that's where Luffy would've gone.

"We know where the captain went!" Carrot said.

"Yeah! To the beach!" Pepper continued. "Whenever something happens, that's where he goes! Wanna see?"

"No thanks…" Zoro answered, not unkindly.

"Hey aren't you missing someone?" Nami asked the two boys. Wait, two? Where'd the other one go? When did he even leave?

"Yeah, Onion!" Wait...those were actually their names?!

"This island is weird…" Hazel muttered under her breath, earning another weird look from her green-haired companion.

"He always disappears, and then he comes running back screaming."

"Waaahhhh! It's horrible! A backwards man!" Came a voice, screaming down the road.

"Onion!"

"Speak of the devil…"

"It's horrible! Wahh! A backwards man! There's a strange man heading this way walking backwards!"

"Liar!" His friends accused him.

"It's true! Look!" Onion pointed down the street behind him. Sure enough, there was a man shuffling backwards down the street towards them. Strange, yes, but Hazel didn't think that warranted screaming.

"Hey! Who just called me strange?!" The backwards man asked as he got closer to them. Up close, Hazel could understand a little bit better what had Onion so freaked out. The man had heart shaped sunglasses, and a strangely striped growth on his chin. "I'm not strange!"

"Pfft, you sure about that?" Hazel laughed.

"You're a little strange," Nami said, much more calm than the older woman.

"Don't be silly. I'm just your typical traveling hypnotist."

"Forgive me, then, for not realizing this is how a 'typical traveling hypnotist' looks…" Hazel muttered.

"Wow! A hypnotist!"

"Show us a trick!"

"Yeah! Show us!"

"What? Don't be silly, I don't even know you," the hypnotist said. "Why should I perform for someone I've only just met? Oh well, look at the ring." He pulled out a metal ring held up by a thin string, dangling it in front of the three kids.

"Then you are gonna perform?" Zoro asked, but the hypnotist ignored him.

"When I say 'one, two, Django', you'll fall sound asleep. Ready? One...two...Django!" All three boys, plus one hypnotist, promptly passed out on the ground.

"What's with this guy?!" Zoro shouted, while Hazel and Nami could only stare in shocked confusion. The shouting seemed to shock the four out of their sleep pretty quickly, thankfully, and the kids looked to the hypnotist in awe.

"That was cool!"

"You really hypnotized us!"

"He hypnotized himself too…" Hazel said, though she was ignored.

"See? I'm not weird! But, I've wasted too much time performing for you all!" Mr. Hypnotist told them, apparently unphased by his trick working on himself, and he left without another word, shuffling backwards down the street.

"So we all agree that guy was super weird, right?"

* * *

The group continued relaxing in the cool breeze for some time, waiting for Luffy to reappear. Hazel was about to call it quits and go look for him herself, when a strange blur zoomed past them on the road.

"Captain!"

"Hm, I thought Luffy would've been with him," Zoro commented as Usopp continued running up the street. Hazel felt ice in her gut. Something was off.

"Is he still upset about what the butler said about his father?" Nami asked.

"Who knows?"

"No! Did you see his face?" Carrot piped up.

"Something must've happened at the beach!

"He was white as a sheet!" Hazel's jaw clenched. Where the hell was Luffy?

"Hey, how do I get to the beach?" Zoro asked, a sense of urgency underlying his tone.

"I smell trouble!" Carrot yelled.

"That hypnotist was headed that way too!"

"It's time for the Usopp Pirates to take action!"

"Yeah sure," Zoro said, brushing them off a bit. "But show me the way to the beach."

"Me too, I have a really bad feeling about this…" Hazel said, standing up and brushing herself off. The kids led them in the direction Usopp had come from, down a long winding path that eventually led to the opposite beach from where they'd docked.

"This is the place! Our captain always heals his emotional pain here!"

"Emotional pain, huh?" Hazel muttered, scanning the cliffs for any sign of a straw hat or rubber limbs, her heart beating faster every second she saw nothing.

"That straw hat guy isn't here…" Pepper said, looking crestfallen. Hazel ignored him. He had to be here. If he wasn't, then…

"It's pretty fragile here…" Nami said, standing to peer over the edge of the cliff. Hazel came to stand next to her, rocks falling far to the beach below from where her shoes kicked them up. She leaned forward, scanning the water, hoping he hadn't somehow fallen in.

"Oi, you two, don't fall!" Zoro called a warning. Hazel turned to answer him.

"I'm not gonna-!" Her voice caught as her foot slipped, eyes widening in surprise as Zoro lunged too late to catch her.

"Hazel!" Nami screamed. Hazel watched as their distraught faces grew smaller, the scream stuck in her throat as the rocky cliff below quickly came up to greet her. _This is really how I'm gonna go? 21 years of bullshit, and I get taken out by some rocks and my own two feet?! _

"Oof!" She grunted as she landed on something soft, breaking her fall as she bounced off whatever it was. She rubbed at a small bump forming on her head, as well as a sore spot on her butt from where she'd landed on the rock. It'd hurt in the morning, but thank goodness there was something to break her fall, or else she would've been splattered all over the cliffside. Wait a minute…"Luffy! Hey! I found him!" It was hard to see their exact expressions from down here, but Nami's eyes were covered while Zoro looked ready to cut her in half. "Oh yeah, I'm ok!"

"I CAN SEE THAT!" The swordsman yelled down at her, while the others marvelled over her brother's butt sticking up out of the rock. They made their way down to the two siblings, Hazel all the while trying to pull Luffy out of the rock where her fall had pushed him in deeper, but to no avail.

"Luffy!" Nami gasped as she came upon the scene. "How did this happen?!"

"Well, at least part of that's from me landing on him…" Hazel winced, earning a sharp smack to the back of her head from a seething navigator. "Ow! Hey, I already hit my head once!"

"Next time be more careful!" Nami yelled as the other four came into view.

"He fell!"

"He's a goner!"

"So that's why our captain…"

"Eh, he'll be fine," Hazel said, unconcerned with her brother's predicament. "We just! Gotta get! Him out! Of the rocks!" She grunted, pulling Luffy's arm but only succeeding in stretching it out. "See? Listen!" She told the three kids, who each put an ear up next to the rubber-man.

_**Snore…**_

"This guy…" Zoro smirked, walking over to tap Luffy with a sheathed sword. The boy's hand twitched, and within seconds he was sitting up yawning, the rock crumbling away from him easily.

"You mean to tell me literally falling on you and yanking on your arm did nothing, but one poke from a sword and you're awake and moving no problem?! Luffy, I'm starting to think you're playing favorites!"

"Morning!"

* * *

"What?!"

"Kaya-san is gonna be killed?!"

"Really, Mr. Straw Hat Man?! Pirates are really gonna attack the village?!"

"Yep, that's what they said," Luffy answered the children's questions. "No doubt about it!"

"Kind of an odd place to take a nap, isn't it?" Zoro questioned, unconcerned with the apparent pirate plot.

"It's strange. I thought I was on top of the cliff…" Luffy mumbled in answer.

"I'm just glad you're ok," Hazel told him, checking him over for any injuries just to be safe. "Thanks for falling asleep right in that spot by the way, if you'd been anywhere else I'd be a goner!"

"Huh?!"

"So that butt-ler really is a bad guy!"

"I never liked him!"

"And the hypnotist was in on it too!" The three kids continued to shout, distracting Hazel before she could answer Luffy's question.

"So that's what your captain was doing, that's why he was running towards the village like his pants were on fire!" Nami reasoned, pulling everyone's attention to her. "It'll be alright, the villagers have plenty of warning. They can just hide out in the hills. Pirates are generally pretty dumb!"

"Hey!" Hazel scolded, completely ignoring the fact she'd just fallen off a cliff. "Don't lump me in with those two!"

"Hey, maybe we should go hide too!" Carrot told his friends.

"Yeah, and we'd better take all our valuables!" Pepper agreed.

"Let's see, piggy bank...snacks...model ship...what else?" Onion listed off. Hazel bit her lip to hide her smile. Kids had the best priorities. The Veggie-Squad ran off shortly after that, hurrying towards the village and their homes.

"Oh no!" Luffy gasped suddenly.

"What's wrong?" Zoro asked, turning towards his captain.

"I've got to go buy some meat before the butcher leaves town!"

* * *

The group made their way back to the village, following along the winding path at somewhere between a rush and a leisurely pace, when they came across a familiar long nose standing in the middle of the road.

"Hey, Captain!" The young boys called out, grabbing the older boy's attention. Hazel saw him quickly wipe his eyes and hide his arm behind his back, and her brow furrowed in concern as they met him fully.

"Hey, you guys!" Usopp greeted, before his eyes found a familiar figure and he gasped. "You're alive?!"

"Alive?" Luffy asked, surprised. "Yeah, I must've dozed off."

"He took a long nap," Pepper clarified, as if it made perfect sense. "Captain! We heard what's going on! We've got to hurry and warn everyone about the pirates!"

"Warn...everyone…" Usopp started, a strange look on his face before he started laughing loudly, startling the group. "I just made it all up as usual! Got so mad at that butler, I made up a lie about him being a pirate!" He laughed, drawing confused looks from the visiting pirate crew.

"What?! It's a lie?!" Pepper yelled.

"Man, I thought something exciting was gonna happen!"

"The captain even fooled that straw hatted guy!" Onion said, turning back to look at Luffy, who just grew more confused.

"I can't believe the captain would do that," Carrot said, turning away from Usopp while the other two began to glare at him.

"Me neither."

"Or me! I don't like that butler," Onion started. "But I never thought the captain would lie to hurt someone!"

"Let's go home!"

"Yeah, it's dinner time!"

"Wonder what we're having…" And so the three boys walked away, leaving their captain behind.

"Usopp…?" Hazel started, pulling him out of his blank stare as he watched them go. Instead of answering, the boy pushed past them, once again walking towards the beach they'd just come from. The pirates watched him go, exchanging a few looks between them as the sun started to set. Without a word, they began to follow after him back to the beach once more.

* * *

"There, all done!" Nami exclaimed as she finished wrapping a bandage around Usopp's arm. Hazel didn't know what he had done to get shot, but with this strange conspiracy going on it wasn't hard to guess. But why not say anything?

"Why did you tell them that?" Luffy asked, voicing her thoughts.

"Because I'm a liar," Usopp said solemnly, not looking up. "No one'll believe me! I should've known!"

"But the facts are still the facts," Nami began. "Pirates really are coming, aren't they?"

"Just because they don't believe you doesn't mean it's not true," Hazel added.

"They're coming, alright," Usopp answered. "But no one will believe me! They all think tomorrow will just be another peaceful day…" As he trailed off, something seemed to click in his mind, and he suddenly stood up. "So it's up to me to meet those pirates and fight them off! Then I'll have a real tall tale to tell! I may be a liar, but this time my tale will come true!" He sat back down, holding out his injured arm. "They can shoot me in the arm, and they can chase me with brooms, but this island is my home! I love this village! I've gotta protect my neighbors!" He pressed the heels of his palms to his eyes, trying and failing to stop the flow of tears falling from his eyes. "There's not much time to plan, but I refuse to let everyone get murdered!"

"Well said…" Hazel smirked, crossing her arms. From the corner of her eye, she saw Zoro smirk beside her.

"You've got a noble heart! You sent your crew away so you could face the danger alone," the green-haired man said.

"Well then, we're gonna help you!" Luffy declared, rolling his shoulder and stretching his muscles, a determined look on his face.

"I'm telling you now, the treasure's all mine!" Nami said, and Hazel sent her an odd look.

"Uhh, Nami? Who said anything about treasure?"

"You guys are willing to fight beside me?" Usopp asked, wiping tears from his eyes. "Why?"

"You're hopelessly outnumbered, right?" Luffy bluntly answered.

"You look pretty scared," came Zoro's not-much-better reply.

"M-me?! Scared?!" Usopp yelled. "Ha! Th-that's a laugh! Outnumbered or not, I'll be f-fine! I'm Captain Usopp, brave warrior of the sea!" Hazel smiled fondly, then glanced at his shaking legs. Apparently the others had noticed it too, as they collectively stared at his rattling limbs. "Hey! Damn, damn it! Damn it!" Usopp yelled, hitting his legs so they'd stop shaking. "What are you looking at?! I'm going up against Captain Kuro's pirates! Of course I'm scared! I don't want your pity! You guys can stop laughing! Leave!"

"We're not laughing at you," Zoro answered simply. "We're impressed, that's why we're going to help you."

"Who risks their life out of pity?!" Luffy agreed

"It's a very brave thing indeed to admit when one's afraid, and to do the thing anyway," Hazel smiled at him.

"Y-you guys…"

* * *

Some time later, after Usopp calmed down, he began explaining the full situation to them. He was right when he said there wasn't much time to plan, and Hazel also noted they'd likely get very little, if any, sleep that night; but as long as they were successful, none of that really mattered.

"They'll attack from this beach," Usopp began, standing on the beach facing the cliffs. "And this is the route to the village," he pointed to a single slope leading up to the clifftops; there was no other way up unless you tried climbing the sheer rock beside it.

"So if we can defend this path, the village will be safe!"

"Wow, piece of cake!" Luffy said.

"I doubt it'll be that simple, Cap…"

"It's easier said than done," Usopp agreed. "We'll have to fight like an army. What can you guys do?"

"I cut."

"I stretch."

"I steal."

"I punch _and_ kick!" Hazel grinned, having successfully one-upped everyone else in the contest they didn't know they were having.

"I run and hide." Usopp said, turning away from the pirates.

"You've gotta fight!"

"I-I'm just kidding, jeez…"

* * *

"That's perfect! There's no way they'll make it up this pass, not with all the oil we poured down it!"

The group stood at the top of the cliff, observing all their hard work. Usopp had had the brilliant idea of coating the entire path with slippery oil, making it harder for the enemy pirates to climb up, while making it easier for them to pick them off one by one. Hazel honestly found it pretty impressive; it was more planning than she'd ever given anything herself, other than writing, which she tended to overplan.

"Now here's the plan," Usopp reiterated. "We attack 'em while they're slipping and sliding. No matter what happens, we hold this pass!" The pirates nodded in affirmation.

"I just hope we don't end up slipping and sliding ourselves," Nami pointed out, standing back from the oil. "It'd be pretty dumb to get caught in our own trap!

"You sure did come up with a slick plan!" Luffy laughed, until Hazel bopped him on the head with her fist. "Ow! Hey, Hazel!"

"That was a bad joke!" She glared down at him, hands on her hips.

"When it comes to daring ideas and this slingshot, I have absolute confidence!" Usopp declared, ignoring the siblings as he stared over the sea. A light was coming up over the horizon, brightening up the dark sky. A solemn mood passed over the group as the sky continued to lighten, signalling the start of the impending battle.

"It's dawn. Here they come."


	5. Chapter 5

**As promised, here's chapter 5 right away! I'm so happy to finally be getting to this point in the series, and can't wait to write the next couple arcs! I hope you enjoy, and please review and let me know what you think! **

**Reminder: You can follow me on tumblr at laws-yellow-submarine for more One Piece related writing, as well as updates on this story!**

* * *

Time continued to pass slowly, the group continuing to watch the horizon as dawn turned fully into day. Hazel was starting to feel twitchy. "This is odd…" She muttered under her breath, turning her head to see if maybe they were just coming from a different direction.

"Where are they? It's already dawn!" Luffy whined, kicking the ground.

"Maybe they overslept?" Zoro suggested, causing Hazel to snort at the idea.

"Maybe it's just me…" Nami started, holding her hand up to her ear. "But I think I hear someone yelling 'yarrr' to the north of us." The group stood in silence for a moment, and sure enough, a soft "Yarrr!" could be heard carried on the wind from behind them.

"North?!" Usopp flinched.

"I definitely hear something!" Nami continued.

"Hey, what is it?!" Zoro began interrogating Usopp, while Hazel stood and tapped her foot at him in increasing aggravation.

"Er...there's another landing on the north beach!"

"You mean we're on the wrong beach?!" Luffy yelled.

"Of course!" Hazel facepalmed. "The beach where we docked, there was a path there too!"

"But the pirates had their secret meeting here!" Usopp explained. "I just assumed…"

"We've gotta get to them before they attack the village!" Luffy yelled. "Which way do we go?!"

"If we run straight north we should get there in about three minutes!" Usopp said, pointing towards the other beach. "There's another pass almost exactly like this one. We can stop them there!"

"Well, so much for our oil plan…" Hazel lamented as Nami screamed. "Woah! What is it?!"

"Our ships are at the north beach! They'll take our treasure!"

"That's what you're worried about?!"

"I'll be there in 20 seconds!" Luffy yelled, running in some direction. Hazel assumed it was north.

"Damn, my great oil slick plan was for nothing!"

"That's ok, Usopp! Let's just get to the other beach!" Usopp nodded, taking off towards the north beach as Nami yelled at them to hurry.

"We're going, Na-woah!" Hazel yelled, foot getting caught in the oil slick. She quickly grabbed hold of the rock next to her, scraping her hands in her effort to grab hold. It was a real shame they weren't going to get to use this stuff; it was working great on them!

"What are you two doing?!" Zoro yelled, turning back to the two women.

"Help, I'm slipping!" Nami yelled, having the same trouble Hazel had though without the rocks to grab hold of. Instead, her hand gripped the only thing it could find; unfortunately, that thing was Zoro, and he went crashing to the ground.

"Argh! Let go, idiot!"

"Sorry!"

"Ah! Hold on you two, I'm coming!" Hazel yelled, trying to make her way over to help the two up. Unfortunately for her, the second she tried to step away from the cliffside, her foot slipped again, and she went sliding down the path. Oil stuck to her in places she didn't even know existed, ruining her shirt and plastering her curls to her face. "This is so not my day…" She muttered, picking her head up only to see Nami using Zoro's head as a springboard to get out of the oil. The poor man was sent down the path, crashing into Hazel and sending them both further down the sloping path.

"Sorry, guys! But our treasure's in danger! Don't worry about me!" And then she was gone, and all Hazel could do was blink after her.

"What just happened?"

"Someday I'm gonna kill that girl!" Zoro yelled, pushing himself up. Hazel watched as he pulled himself to a standing position, trying and failing to run on top of the oil before crashing once more to the ground. "Dammit! How can I get up there?!"

"I know it's not your style, but if we slow down we might be able to help-" She was cut off as Zoro tried and failed to run past her yet again. "-each other...out…" Hazel finished lamely. She pushed herself to standing, kicking as much excess oil off her shoes as she could, and held out her hand to help pull him up.

"Damn that Nami! When I see her again…"

"Yeah, yeah, you'll cut her, right? Worry about that later, we've gotta go!" Zoro grit his teeth, pulling two of his swords free and stabbing them into the ground.

"It's just an oily hill!" He declared, before turning to Hazel, who was eyeing him strangely. "Grab on!"

"Wha-?!" But he ignored her question and reached out to pull her close, signaling to climb on his back.

"I'll get us both out of here, now grab on!" Hazel stared at him for another second, until he seemed to decide she wasn't coming and started to move.

"Ah! Wait for me!" She yelled, quickly scrambling over to wrap her arms around his shoulders, marveling for a second when he didn't even flinch at her added weight on his back. The dude was built like a brick house. "Ok! Onward!" She yelled, pointing straight ahead. With a grunt Zoro took off, using his swords to gain traction as he ran over the oil spill in the middle of the path. They reached the top quickly, and Hazel would admit she was impressed, and the fact that they were both already disgusting and covered in oil meant she wasn't even grossed out about the fact that he hadn't showered in two weeks.

"Finally, I made it!" Zoro yelled as Hazel set her feet on solid ground. "Now, which way to the north beach?" He asked her. Hazel looked around, unsure, before deciding on a direction.

"Uhh, that way! I think that's the direction Usopp and Nami left in!"

"You don't know?!" Zoro snapped at her, taking off in the direction she pointed anyway.

"Hey, neither do you!" She snapped back, running after him. "Just listen for the sounds of fighting, dammit!"

They did, only getting turned around once or twice before they heard yelling, getting louder and louder as they ran towards it. Hazel couldn't make out what was being said, but she thought she saw a red blur to their right.

"Luffy?!"

He didn't look her way, instead continuing to run towards the northern slope, now coming into view. Hazel saw Zoro take out one of his swords, preparing to enter the battle, and she braced herself to make a quick stop if necessary. As the three neared the top of the slope, they saw a small group of what she assumed were the Black Cat Pirates, if the "ears" on their heads were any indication. She came to a quick stop next to Luffy at the top of the hill, sliding into position, and thrust her leg out into a powerful kick. Her foot connected with one of the enemy pirates' faces, and he was sent back towards his crew, but she wasted no time thinking about that as she fluidly moved to punch another incoming pirate. Was this really all they had to offer?

"What's this, Captain Django?!" The enemies yelled, the three of them having made short work of them. "You never told us we'd be facing demons on this job!"

"Not much of a challenge. What _was_ that?" Zoro questioned.

"How could I know? I'm in a bad mood!" Luffy answered.

"I thought it was at least a pretty good warm up, didn't you?" Hazel joked.

"Nami!" Zoro yelled suddenly, and Hazel almost feared for the poor girl. "You marooned me in that muck!"

"Damn you, Usopp!" Wait, why was Luffy mad? "Why didn't you tell me which way was north?!" Oh…

"Why'd you take off before anyone else if you didn't know which way you were going?" Hazel asked, the only calm one in this situation. Luffy didn't answer her, as was typical when she was calling him out for being an idiot.

"I didn't realize you guys were so tough!" Usopp spoke up, drawing Hazel's attention to him. The kid looked rough, all beaten and bloodied; but he was alive, and that's what mattered.

"Yup!" Hazel chuckled.

"Always so modest, aren't you, Luffy?"

"Huh? I'm not moths, why would you say that?"

"Never mind…"

"What took you three so long?" Nami asked from where she leaned against the cliff. She looked to be in much better shape than Usopp, but Hazel figured she hadn't been fighting as much either. "Stop for a manicure?"

"You left me stranded in that quagmire!" Zoro yelled, gritting his teeth.

"That was an accident! Besides, it was better that one of us got free than for all of us to be stuck!"

"Then _you_ should've stayed stuck!"

"Honestly, Nami, two people free would've been better than just one!" Hazel scolded. Meanwhile, Luffy was accosting Usopp, ignoring the others' struggles.

"How was I supposed to know which way was north and which way wasn't north?!"

"You ran off like you knew where you were going!" Usopp countered, repeating what Hazel had said before.

"I only had a rough idea! Very rough!"

"Er, pardon me," The hypnotist-turned-captain said to his crew members, drawing Hazel's attention away from her own arguing crewmates. "Please tell me how these three _children_ bested the lot of you?"

"Excuse me!" Hazel yelled, interrupting everyone. "I'm clearly an adult!"

"Hey, they're still alive!" Luffy said, ignoring what Hazel's pout. "They've got real spunk!"

"Now, listen!" Django said, turning back to his fallen crew. "We don't have time to play around here! If our opponent is strong, we must be even stronger! Everybody, look at this ring!" He pulled out the ring he'd used to hypnotize the Usopp Pirates the day before, and Hazel quickly looked away so as not to be caught in its spell. "When I say 'one, two, Django', you'll all become superhumanly strong, and all your wounds will heal instantly! And you'll keep getting stronger and stronger!"

"Wait, can that actually work?" Hazel asked.

"What are those guys doing?" Luffy asked Usopp, who answered that he didn't know.

"Hypnotism!" Nami answered. "He's trying to make them believe that they're getting stronger! What a load of crap!"

"Don't dismiss the power of the mind, Nami. Everyone, be on your guard," Hazel warned, eyeing the pirates currently picking themselves off the ground.

"One...Two…" Django began, swinging the pendulum ring. "Django!" Instantly, the fallen pirates surged to life, yelling at the top of their lungs as they picked up their weapons.

"No way!" Nami yelled. "They were exhausted a moment ago!"

Rather than running after them immediately, the Black Cat Pirates instead ran towards the cliffside, the one in front hitting it with a punch powerful enough to collapse part of the rockface. As stone began to fall around them, the pirates yelled again, surged on by their newfound strength.

"He broke the cliff!" Zoro yelled, shocked. "What power!"

"Incredible! His hypnosis really worked!" Nami yelled, holding her head in shock.

"One of them can demolish a cliff, and there's a whole horde of them!" Usopp yelled.

"We're fucked if they land a hit on us!" Hazel warned. "Don't let them get the chance!"

"You two wait at the top of the hill," Zoro told Nami and Usopp, who readily agreed to get out of the way. "Luffy, Hazel, and I will deal with - Luffy?" The swordsman and the record-keeper turned to look at their captain, who'd fallen silent and calm during this whole ordeal.

"Luffy?"

"YAAARRRR!" The rubber-man yelled suddenly, surging with newfound strength.

"He hypnotized you too?!" Zoro yelled, while Hazel just facepalmed.

"Whatever, this works in our favor! Get 'em, Luff! Go get 'em!"

"Oi, he's not a dog!" But Luffy took off towards the incoming cat pirates, arms reared back and ready to punch.

"Gum Gum…" He surged forward, arms moving so quickly it made it seem like he had 20 of them, all punching the enemy pirates one right after another. "Gatling!"

"Yeah! Nice one, Luffy!" Hazel cheered, beaming at the sight of the fallen enemies. Luffy continued to roar, running at the other pirates at full speed...until he ran right past them. "Wha-?! Luffy, what the hell are you doing?!"

Luffy ran to the enemy ship, grabbing it by the hull and straining until finally the entire figurehead broke loose. Hazel's eyes widened at the sight. Hypnosis was truly insane…

"H-he's tearing off the stempost! He'll scuttle the ship!" Luffy turned towards the voice, swinging the stempost around like a madman, trying to smash all the opposing pirates that he could. "Captain! Do something!"

"On 'one, two, Django', you'll fall asleep! One, two, Django!"

"Luffy!" Hazel yelled, but it was too late. The hypnosis was instantaneous, and Luffy was crushed under the weight of the stempost he'd been swinging just a second before. At least he'd taken out a few before being put to sleep.

"Luffy wiped out most of them!" Nami commented happily, echoing Hazel's thoughts.

"But now he's smashed under the stempost!" Usopp yelled, sounding worried.

"Eh, he'll be fine. He's been through worse," Hazel assured him.

"Just see to your own wounds," Zoro told him, smirking at the damage done by their nutcase captain.

"Hey, Buchie!" Django yelled suddenly, drawing their attention. "Get over here! The bow's broken!"

"The bow?!" Came a new voice. "How'd that happen?!"

"Hey it's-"

"The Meowban Brothers," finished one of the pirates, grinning. "The ship's guards!"

"Sounds like they've got more men on the ship…" Zoro warned Hazel, as though she hadn't been listening. She nodded anyway, bracing herself for a fight.

"Aye, boy," Django answered, a sinister grin on his face. "_They_ were still on the ship!"

"Who's on the ship?" Zoro asked, readying his swords. Hazel eyed her brother, snoring away from under the enemies' figurehead, and clenched her jaw. She needed to find a way to wake him up and get him out of there before things got too hairy. She ignored the taunts of the Black Cat Pirates, instead inching slightly in Luffy's direction, but not too far so as not to give away her thoughts.

"Meowban Brothers!" Django yelled, suddenly. "Come on down!" Hazel couldn't hear the response that came from the ship, but a second later held back a gasp as two figures shot into the sky, settling to their feet on either side of their captain. "Meowban Brothers, I need your help."

"You called, Captain Django?" Said the first one, a man with perfectly coiffed green hair and a rather pronounced hunched back. He had gloves on, with knives sharpened to form claws like a cat on each finger, and was staring them down with a rather, well, cat-like grin.

"What is it?" The second man was much larger than the first, oval shaped and with the same claw-like gloves on each hand. This one also had his teeth sharpened into fangs, and both men had the appearance of cat ears on the top of their heads, matching the rest of their crew.

"Man, you guys really go for aesthetics, huh?" Hazel couldn't help but snark. Regardless of how ridiculous she thought they looked, she held her stance. It wouldn't be wise to underestimate them.

"What are they?!" She heard Nami say from behind her.

"Amazing, they jumped from that high deck!" Usopp exclaimed. "Like cats!"

"Buchi, Sham, we must get up that path!" Django explained to his men. "But as you can see, there's something in our way. Get rid of it." Hazel narrowed her eyes at the men as they began to splutter, eyes wide and fearful.

"W-we can't do that! Can we, Buchi?!"

"H-he looks really mean! And she looks scary!" Now that was just rude, Hazel didn't think she was _that_ scary…

"I thought they were some kind of secret weapon!" Usopp yelled, shocked at their behavior.

"They're scared to death!" Nami agreed.

"Something's fishy here…" Hazel muttered, catching Zoro's eye. The pirates had made it seem like these guys were gonna tear them to shreds, so why were they acting like scaredy-cats?

"We're just the ship guards!" Sham explained, looking pretty pathetic.

"Aye! We're not supposed to participate in any fights!"

"Sham! Attack that swordsman at once!" Django shouted, putting an end to any further argument. Sham acquiesced, despite his sputtering and crying, and began making his way towards them.

"He's starting to cry!" Nami shouted, sounding confused. "Why's he making someone like that fight?!"

"Ready or not, here I come!" Sham yelled, running towards Zoro. "I'll scratch your eyes out!"

"He thinks he can scratch me?!" Zoro yelled, getting one of his swords ready to catch the opposing cat-pirate. "I'll cut your fool head off if you don't stop!" Hazel stayed where she was, ready to step in if necessary, but trusting Zoro to handle this one himself.

"Go ahead, if you can…" Sham smirked, and dread clutched Hazel's stomach as Zoro just managed to block his attack. His claws were extended, reaching for the swordsman's head, but thankfully blocked by his sword.

"Zoro!" Hazel yelled out in shock, charging forward but stopping when Sham leapt away.

"You underestimated me, didn't you?" Sham taunted. "You fell for it! I was just pretending to be a scaredy-cat!"

"He's not really a coward?!" Usopp yelled, and Hazel grit her teeth.

"Must not be very strong if you have to resort to dirty tricks to score a win!" Hazel snapped, not too quietly, but before Sham could react they were interrupted by Nami's yell.

"Zoro! Your swords!"

Sure enough, the two swords that were once strapped to Zoro's hip were now slung across Sham's back. There was no way for them to just steal them back; he was too far away, and all it would take is one swipe from his claws and Hazel would be done for.

_Shit!_

"Hmph! Seems you have a bit of talent. But you shouldn't take Sham Meowban, Guard of the Black Cat, too lightly!" He continued taunting. "Lose something, me bucko? Somehow your pretty swords ended up with me!"

"Give me back those swords!" Zoro demanded, and Hazel was glad she wasn't on the receiving end of that glare. Seems Sham didn't feel the same way, as he just continued to laugh.

"Give them back? Heehee, isn't one enough? Before we fight, I'd better chuck these," He said, tossing the swords behind him. "They'll just slow me down." Hazel's breath hitched as she saw Zoro's swords clack against the stone ground, landing somewhere near Django. "Purrrr-fect, now I've lightened my load!"

Zoro wasted no time in responding, charging forward with his sword drawn as he yelled, "Swords that don't belong to you should be treated more respectfully!" He slashed at Sham, cutting through his stomach easily, and continuing forward to retrieve his swords. Seeing she'd be no use here, and that their enemy was thoroughly distracted, Hazel began making her way closer to her sleeping brother.

She tried to drown out the fight, her attention shifting only a moment when the ground rattled beneath her. She kept to the side, sneaking along to avoid drawing Django's attention towards her, and other than having to kick a few fallen pirates in the face, she received no opposition on her trek towards the fallen stempost. She'd just made it when she heard Usopp shout, and she chanced a look behind her.

"What the hell is she doing?!" Nami was running past Zoro's battle with the Meowban Brothers, heading towards his still fallen swords, and in doing so running straight at Django. Without thinking, Hazel dashed forward, stepping on and over fallen enemies as she raced to reach her destination first.

Almost there. Another step. Suddenly she was falling, tripping over someone's arm. She quickly thrust her arms out to push Nami out of the way, falling over the two swords in the process. It wasn't until she hit the ground that she noticed the blood dripping on the stone, or the sharp pain in her shoulder where Django had cut her with his pendulum.

"No swords for you!" Django mocked, brandishing his weapon.

"Hazel!" Nami shouted, staring at her in shock. Hazel glanced up at her, giving her what she hoped was a reassuring smile, then winced as she put pressure on her left arm.

"Don't look at me like that, Nami, I can promise you I've had worse," She joked. "Of course, I can't think of anything right now…" She really couldn't blame Nami for looking like she wanted to hit her right now. "Move, it's dangerous here!" She urged.

Whatever Nami's response would've been died on her tongue as Django began to sputter in fear, staring up at the top of the cliffs at some far off figure. "Uh S-sir, we hit a few snags!" He stammered out, and the rest of his crew seemed to follow suit, shaking and sputtering as if they'd all short circuited.

"C-C-Captain K-Kuro! H-he'll k-kill us a-all!"

"It's long past dawn," came the pirate-turned-butler's voice, a dangerous undertone hidden behind the obvious disdain. "But you seem to be having trouble following my plan. What is all this?!" Hazel winced, both at the shout and at the stinging in her shoulder as she quickly pulled Nami behind her and out of the direct line of fire.

"Hazel, wha-?!"

"Shh! I may be injured, but I can still help keep you safe. Stay close to me." Nami nodded, biting her lip.

"Are you telling me these children held you up? Is this what the Black Cat Pirates have become? Is that it, Django?!"

"B-but you said it didn't matter if we let the kid go," Django stammered. "That's what you said!"

"Yes, I said that…" Klahadore - Kuro, rather - started. "And I was right! It shouldn't have been a problem! Anyone could've predicted that he'd try to thwart us, but I didn't expect your defenses to be so feeble! I'm in no mood to hear excuses."

"'Feeble' he says? Us?" Sham spoke up, having stopped shaking.

"Care to say that again, Cap'n Kuro?" Buchie continued, sizing up the newcomer.

"You were strong before, but that was three years ago! It's not like we partied while you lived the easy life in this village!"

"That's right! We've attacked lotsa towns and sunk lotsa pirates!"

"Your point being…?" Kuro sounded bored, despite his supposed men declaring mutiny right to his face. Hazel felt herself tense, glancing at the agitated crowd around her.

"You've done nothing for three years!" Sham shouted.

"There's no way you can beat the Meowban Brothers of today!" Buchie continued, and the two raced past Zoro, claws readying to strike.

"S-stop!" Django shouted. "Buchie! Sham!"

"You're not our captain anymore!"

"Sorry, but we're gonna kill ya!" Hazel watched as the Meowban Brothers struck their former captain, only to slice the man's bag to shreds instead of the man himself. Where barely seconds before he'd been standing at the top of the hill, Kuro now stood at the Brothers' backs, brandishing weapons of his own. They mimicked the clawed gloves of the Meowban Brothers, but rather than claw-like daggers, he had full-fledged swords at the ends of each fingertip.

"Who are you going to kill?"

"He pulled a pussyfoot maneuver!" Someone shouted next to Hazel, causing her to jump slightly.

"Seriously?" She groaned. "I'm getting so sick of the cat theme…"

Just as soon as he'd appeared, Kuro was gone yet again, quickly appearing behind Sham and Buchie with his arms across their shoulders. "You two were right, I have gotten soft." The men stiffened as he brought a sword up to each of their throats. "It's true I'm not your captain anymore, but I hired you for a job! And the penalty for failure is death!"

"What did you fools expect?" Django snapped at his men, after some of them had begun to whimper at the Meowban Brothers' capture. "Captain Kuro's pussyfoot maneuver is a technique for undetectable movement. You could gather 50 assassins, and they'd all be dead before they knew he was near. We've got to carry out his plan. When I saw him for the first time after three years, and saw that habit of his, I shivered." Hazel raised an eyebrow, listening intently despite this being her enemy; hell, _because_ it was her enemy. She needed all the information she could get if they were gonna beat this guy. "To avoid scratching his face with his 'cat claws'," Django continued. "He pushes his glasses up his nose like that; it's proof that he hasn't forgotten how to kill!"

Suddenly, Buchie screamed, and everyone collectively turned to see Kuro's sword pressed into his neck. "Three years of inaction have softened my heart," Kuro said, unconcerned with the main's yowls. "You've got five minutes. If everything isn't sorted out by then, I'll kill every last one of you with my own hands."

Those seemed to be the magic words, as all the previously fallen pirates began to scream and beg for their lives. "We can finish this in five minutes!" Django promised. "No problem! We'll just kill _him_ real quick, then we can charge right up the slope!"

"Hazel, we need to get these swords to Zoro!" Nami whispered harshly, pulling Hazel off the ground. The older woman had nearly forgotten she'd fallen on top of them earlier, engrossed as she was with the current situation, but she quickly complied, clutching her shoulder as she stood up.

"Aye, we were beating him before!"

"He ain't so fearsome! He'll be sharkbait in five seconds!"

"Zoro!" Nami shouted, catching the man's attention as Hazel stood out of the way. "Your swords!" She kicked at the objects, sending them through the air and towards the green swordsman.

"Why you?!" Zoro yelled. "First you trample me, then you kick my swords?!"

"What, no 'thank you'?" Nami smirked.

"Yeah, thanks," Zoro grinned as he caught them.

"Scratch attack! You may have more swords now, but your skill is the same!" Oh, weren't they in for a surprise? Hazel smirked as Zoro readied his weapons, glad to finally have an edge on their side.

"You don't understand," Zoro said clearly despite the sword between his teeth. _Seriously, how does he do that? _"Wielding three swords, and knowing santoryu are very different things. Tora…Gari!" With a single, powerful slash the Meowban Brothers were done for. As the rest of their company proceeded to freak out at the sight, Hazel felt herself grinning wide at the display.

World's Greatest Swordsman indeed…

"O-one sword stroke! He beat the Meowban Brothers!" Zoro next turned his sword on Kuro, grinning at him from under his bandana.

"Don't worry. It won't even take me five minutes to trash you all!"

"Try it." Kuro adjusted his lenses, glaring at the man as if he were a speck of dust on his freshly polished shoes.

"Nami, we need to wake Luffy up," Hazel whispered, nudging the girl to turn around before they were noticed. She didn't take much prodding, and the two swiftly took off running towards their fallen captain.

"Now what are you meddling witches up to?!" Django yelled after them, spinning his weapon in a quick circle.

"Dammit!" Hazel yelled, glancing behind her as she ran after Nami.

"Die!"

"Nami!"

"Everyone else is fighting with serious injuries, and look at you!" Nami yelled, either ignoring her or not hearing, Hazel wasn't sure; but she also didn't notice the chakram currently sailing their way. "Wake up!" The orange-haired navigator yelled, stepping on Luffy's face.

"Nami, look out!" Hazel yelled, pulling her past Luffy.

"Guys, hit the deck!" Zoro called out, worry flashing through him as the chakram sailed closer to Nami's face.

"Nami, you creep!" Luffy quickly stood up, directly in front of the women, and right in the chakram's path. "Why'd you have to step on my head?!"

"L-Luffy, look out!" Hazel yelled, but it was too late, and the weapon sank itself into the back of her brother's head. Her eyes widened as he fell forward, breath held until his foot braced against the ground, keeping him upright.

"Impossible! He's still standing?!" Django screamed. Without a word, Luffy reached his arm behind his head and pulled the chakram out, allowing the blood to flow freely down his neck. From what Hazel could see, it wasn't much, but she still couldn't get her heart to stop pounding.

"OW! THAT HURT!" Luffy shouted to the heavens, rubbing the back of his head with wide eyes. "That really hurt!" He screamed at Nami, who seemed to be taking the blame for all his problems.

"It wasn't me, Luffy!"

"I'm sure you'll live, Luffy…" Hazel huffed a laugh, before falling to her knees. She felt a bit woozy from the excitement, and the running, and the lack of sleep, and the injury in her shoulder probably wasn't helping matters. It didn't seem to be that deep of a cut, but with all the activity blood continued to trickle from the wound...she definitely wasn't salvaging this shirt when all this was over.

"Hazel!" Nami yelled, kneeling next to her to inspect her wound.

"Your shoulder's bleeding," Luffy said, surprisingly calm compared to how he'd been only a moment ago. He looked at his big sister, concern in his eyes, but she just waved him off.

"Ah, I'm fine, it's just a flesh wound. No worse than that hit to the back of the head you just took," She teased, trying to avoid his worry. "Seriously, Luff, I'm ok. Go kick some ass."

"I'll stay with her," Nami told him, ignoring Hazel's continued declarations that she was perfectly fine. "I've done all I can. I'm leaving the rest to you. After all, this is one fight we gotta win!" The siblings gave her an odd look.

"Nami?"

"There's lots of treasure on the line!"

"Hmph! That's more like you!" Luffy said while Hazel just laughed. "Hey, the evil butler is here!"

Kuro continued to stand at the top of the hill, staring down his nose at his subordinates as he watched them fail and falter at every step. "Three minutes."

"No! Even Buchie and Captain Django can't finish them off in three minutes!"

"Buchie!" Django yelled, catching his newly hypnotized subordinate's attention. "There's no time to think! Kill that haramaki bastard, I'll take the straw hat brat!"

"KLAHADORE! STOP!"

All signs of battle came to a screeching halt as Kaya came to stand at the top of the hill, jacket thrown over her nightgown and a desperate look upon her face.

"Kaya, what're you doing here?!" Usopp shouted, fear present on his face and in his voice.

"Hey, isn't that the girl from the mansion?!" Django said, turning his attention to the young girl. "She's our real target!"

"Then we don't need to sack the village?! We just need to kill the girl, right?!" Similar cries sprung up from the Black Cat Pirates, and Hazel felt herself grow angry with each one. She tried standing, ready to bash a few of their skulls in, but Nami firmly held her down.

"No! You need to rest! Your shoulder is still bleeding!"

"Eh, just use my shirt as a bandage, it's ruined anyway," Hazel suggested, turning confused at Nami's disgust.

"This thing is so filthy, you're better off without the bandage…"

"What a lovely surprise, Miss Kaya…" Kuro began, adjusting his glasses once again. "What brings you here?"

"Merry told me everything," The girl told him, bravely standing her ground in front of him.

"Merry? He lived? I thought I had killed him…" Kaya appeared shocked at how casually he spoke, but Hazel couldn't blame the poor girl. Her whole life was being flipped around and torn to shreds all in one morning, the man who'd taken care of her for three years suddenly trying to have her killed. It'd be a lot for anyone to take in.

"Usopp-san, I'm so sorry!" She suddenly shouted, catching the boy's attention. "How can you ever forgive me? I was so wrong about you. I just couldn't believe that Klahadore was a pirate."

"It's ok, Kaya! Why'd you come here?! You have to escape! Your life is in danger!"

"But aren't you fighting them?!" Kaya yelled, tears threatening to spill over. "Even though we treated you so horribly? Even though you're bleeding all over?"

"Of course!" Usopp insisted. "I'm...I'm a brave warrior of the sea!"

"Klahadore!" Kaya shouted at the former butler. "If you want my fortune I'll give it to you! Just take it and leave the village alone!" Kuro was silent for a moment, adjusting his glasses for the thousandth time.

"Not good enough, Miss Kaya," He said matter-of-factly, not even considering the idea. "Yes, I want your fortune, but I also want peace of mind. I spent three years earning the trust of the villagers here. I've grown comfortable, I can even relax. Only when I have that peace of mind and your wealth will my plan have been accomplished. Thus, the pirate attack on the village, and your accidental demise, are both quite essential."

"Kaya, run! Don't waste your breath on him! He's not the man you knew!" Usopp began to plead with her once again, but stopped short when the young girl pulled a gun out from beneath her coat. She pointed it directly at Kuro, surprising everyone in the vicinity.

"Leave this village alone!"

"Hmm, you've really grown up in the last three years...and I've been at your side for all the changes, haven't I? Even before you lost your parents and became ill, you and I spent a lot of time together. We went sailing together, and took trips into town. When you had a fever, I stayed at your bedside day and night. I suffered with you, I laughed with you, I was your ever humble servant!" Hazel narrowed her eyes, nervous about where this was headed. "I humored you, Miss Kaya, in all your silly dreams. And I endured it all for today! The day I can kill you!" Kaya's tears flowed freely down her cheeks, the gun lowering slightly toward the ground at his harsh words.

"I, who was once the Dread Captain Kuro, bowed and scraped to a spoiled little girl, and catered to her every whim, day and night!" Kaya's trembling hands dropped the gun. "Can you fathom my humiliation?!"

"KURO!" Came Usopp's cry, the boy having launched himself at the man, fist raised and ready to punch his lights out.

"Usopp, that reminds me...I still owe you for hitting me," Kuro dodged Usopp's attack, standing with his "claws" at the ready, poised to rip Usopp in half. "You hit me with all your might!"

Before he could attack, he was knocked off his feet by a sudden rubbery limb. As cries rang out that Captain Kuro was down, said limb sprang back to its owner, snapping back into place as Luffy grinned at his target.

"If you don't like getting hit, I'll punch you a hundred times more!"

"What was that?! That kid sent Captain Kuro sailing from all the way over there?!" Hazel felt herself smirking at the fear in their voices, imagining the look on Kuro's face after essentially being hit with a large, fist-shaped rubber band.

"NOW!" Sounded through the trees, pulling Hazel from her musings, and three small figures burst onto the scene. Pepper, Carrot, and Onion leapt on Kuro, brandishing weapons typical to those who didn't own anything better: a bat, a frying pan, and a shovel.

"Usopp's Pirates, ready for action!"

"Prepare yourself, you smelly butt-ler!"

"Yeah, smelly butt-ler!"

Hazel's eyes went wide as the three ignored Usopp and Kaya's warnings, shouting revenge for disturbing their peaceful village, and giving Kuro a good **thwack! **to the head. She stood herself up, ignoring Nami's protests that she should rest, and began making her way to stop them, keeping to the side to hopefully avoid notice. Fortunately, everyone's attention seemed fixed on the children, and nobody paid Hazel any attention as she made her way past Luffy, then Django. The boys continued to shout, scolding Usopp for leaving them behind, and thoroughly ignoring the man they'd just beat in the head beginning to stand up. Hazel tried to hurry, making it as far as Zoro before the kids finally noticed, screaming in fear.

"Hey, he walked right past us!"

Hazel paused, both surprised and relieved when Kuro ignored the children who'd just let him have it, but winced when Usopp received a kick to the stomach in retaliation. It was always interesting when "big bad pirates" didn't attack small kids, but she wasn't going to complain, no matter how out of place it felt this time.

"That smarted a bit…" Kuro glared down at Luffy. "You displayed an unusual ability. You must have the power of a devil fruit!"

"That's right!" Luffy answered. "I ate the Gum-Gum Fruit! I'm a rubber-man!"

Shocked cries rang out from the pirates at the announcement, and Hazel took advantage of the distraction to continue moving past Zoro, determined to provide backup for Kaya and the Veggie-Squad now that Usopp had been kicked down the cliff. The swordsman gave her a look as she passed him, and she made a shushing motion, and a look that said "cover me". He gave a barely perceptible nod, guessing her intention, and she smiled gratefully at him before continuing on.

"Django!" Kuro yelled out suddenly, and Hazel paused quickly, noticing Zoro's subtle shift to help keep her progress upward hidden. "I'll kill the rubber-man! You just deal with Miss Kaya! Force her to write the will, as planned, and then kill her!" Hazel's jaw clenched and she balled her fist, nails digging into her palm. "And those three nipping pups too, they're a nuisance."

Well, so much for not killing kids.

"Aye-aye, Cap'n," Django stated, making his way forward, only to be stopped by Zoro's sword.

"Stop." His voice held full command of his audience, and Hazel shimmied further up the hill, until she reached a point where she could climb atop the cliff, and therefore avoid having to sneak past Kuro. "Beyond this point, you shall not pass."

"Buchie!" Hazel's eyes widened as she scrambled the rest of the way up, just in time to avoid the shaking of the earth as the singular Meowban Brother shattered the ground beneath him. She didn't have time to watch further though, and so she left it to Zoro, trusting him to take care of that monster.

"Doesn't know his own strength…" Kuro muttered as Hazel sneaked by him, finally reaching Kaya and the boys.

"W-Witch-lady!" Onion gasped as she came over.

"Monkey D. Hazel, pleasure to meet you!" She smiled at them, figuring she probably did look like a witch-lady at this point. "Sorry for not introducing myself sooner. Hope you don't mind if I provide some extra backup?" The boys shook their heads, not that she really needed their permission, and she placed herself in front of the group, ready for whatever came her way.

Just in time, too, as Django was nearly to them. As he grew closer and closer, Hazel felt the sting in her shoulder, and a part of her longed to get even with the hypnotist. She ignored it for now; her main focus was keeping those kids, and Kaya, safe.

"Usopp's Pirates!" Usopp shouted, pulling all attention to him. The Veggie-Squad snapped to attention, ready to fight for their captain.

"We're warning you - we mean business!"

"We won't run off when our captain needs us!"

"We'll make you pay for hurting the captain!" While Hazel admired their spirits, she kinda wished they would run. It'd make her job a lot easier.

"Protect Kaya!" There was a pause as the boys took in their captain's order, and Hazel grinned as she realized what Usopp was trying to do. "I'm entrusting you men with the most important job of all! Get Kaya away from here safely! Don't let me down men! That's an order from your captain!"

"Aye-aye, Captain!" The boys complied instantly, running to pull Kaya to her feet. "Hurry, Kaya-san! Once we're in the trees, we're in our own backyard!"

"I won't let you escape!" Django yelled, spinning his chakrams around his fingers. Hazel grit her teeth, preparing to run at him, but he was sent flying forward by a pellet to the spine, courtesy of Usopp.

"Ha, that's what you get!"

"Django, follow them!" Kuro ordered when Django complained.

"Argh, aye-aye…!" Django moved to follow into the woods, but was stopped yet again as Hazel blocked his path.

"Hold it right there!" She yelled, standing with confidence as she grinned at him. "I still owe you for that scratch you gave me!"

"I don't have time for you, Girlie!" He shouted, dangling one of his chakrams on a string. "When I say 'One, Two, Django', you'll fall fast asleep!" Hazel grinned wider as he spoke quickly. "One."

"See, that's the thing…" She started, running at him.

"Two, Dja-OOF!" Django went sailing through the air, dropping his chakram, as Hazel's foot collided with his cheek.

"...I'm not that stupid," she finished, watching as he picked himself off the ground. Hazel stooped to pick up his fallen chakram, not at all knowing how to use it effectively, but figuring it could at least help even the odds if she had a Sharp Weapon on hand. "Man, you couldn't use, like, a regular sword or something? How am I supposed to use this thing?"

Django glared at her, but rather than responding, he instead ran right past her; without thinking, her kicking him had given him the opening he needed.

"Ahh! Hey, wait, come back!" She yelled, chucking the Sharp Weapon in his direction, only for it to sink into the ground a few feet away. "Dammit!" Hazel sprinted after him into the trees, hoping she'd at least bought a little time for Kaya and the boys, and that nobody saw how badly she'd messed up.

* * *

As Hazel ran through the woods, it became easy to see where Django had been. The trees around her had been cut down, demolishing the area; she could only imagine the damage had she not stolen one of his chakrams. She could hear the sounds of further destruction up ahead, and she focused on that to tell her where to go.

She kept running, pumping her legs faster and faster, trying to catch up before he caught the others. "Note to self," She huffed. "Don't taunt someone unless you're actually winning…"

Just then she heard a scream; her eyes widened, and her heart thudded as she pushed herself to keep going. Just a little farther. Just a bit more.

More screams. Hazel's lungs were burning, but she pushed on. Just how far away were these guys?!

"There she is!" She heard suddenly to her right, and when she turned to look she was surprised to find Zoro carrying Usopp through the woods. They appeared not to have noticed her yet, as Usopp kept shouting, "Stop! There she is!"

"Ouch! You're hitting my wounds!"

"There she is!" Usopp pointed to his right, and when Hazel looked past his arm she could clearly see Kaya and Django in the middle of a clearing. "She's alive!"

"Probably not for much longer!" Hazel piped up, startling Usopp but drawing no reaction from Zoro. "What do you need from me?"

"Stay here!"

"Kaya's in trouble! Put me dow-!" Usopp started, before being dropped roughly to the ground.

"With pleasure! Stop right there, Hypnotist!" Zoro yelled, charging for the clearing.

"He's not gonna make it…" Hazel muttered, eyes wide as she tried to think. She wouldn't get there any faster than Zoro, and she'd left the chakram in the ground back at the cliff. She looked around, spotting a branch in front of them, and an idea struck her. "Usopp, can you still use your arms?"

He was only surprised for a moment, eyes quickly finding what she'd seen and catching onto her plan. He pulled out his slingshot, loaded it, and pulled it back ready to fire. "Zoro! Watch out for low-hanging branches!" Hazel called out. When he didn't respond she grew nervous, worried he might not have heard her, or he did but didn't understand. Her fears were unfounded, however, as when he approached the right branch he easily cut it down, clearing the way.

"Good!" Usopp called, grinning. "That branch was in the way! Take this, Hypnotist! Secret Technique - Exploding Stars!" And he let go, the projectile sailing through the air unheeded, until it caught Django directly in the face and exploded.

* * *

After helping Usopp to sit with Kaya and his crew, Hazel made her way over to Zoro. He was tying his bandana back around his arm as she approached, and paid her no mind as he looked up through the fallen trees.

"Good thing we were all on the same page, huh?" Hazel said, sitting on a stump. Zoro hummed in acknowledgement, and Hazel let the silence grow for a moment. "Hey, how good are you at teaching?"

"Huh?!" He half-shouted, turning to her in surprise at the question. "What the hell are you asking me that for?"

"Well…" She started, thinking her words through. "I was pretty useless today; hell, I was beyond useless. I couldn't fight any of the weird cat dudes because I didn't have a way of blocking their attacks, and I'd rather not get into how I fumbled things with Django. I always thought knowing how to punch and kick would be enough, but I'm quickly finding out on this journey that it just isn't. Not for me anyway." Zoro's shock had morphed into curiosity, and so she pressed on, staring up at him with sincerity. "I want to get a weapon, but I don't know how to use one effectively. If one of these days I find something I like, can you help me?"

Things were quiet as he thought it over, surprise at having been asked such a thing still clear on his face; but he didn't immediately say no, so Hazel was hopeful. After a few minutes of him mulling it over, he finally sighed, and groaned out a quiet, "Fine…"

"Really?!" Hazel asked, jumping to her feet with a large smile. Zoro took a step back in shock, but she felt she was probably imagining the twitch in his eyebrow.

"Yeah, yeah, I'll see what I can do!"

"Thank you!" She yelled, wrapping her arms around him in a hug without thinking. She squeezed, ignoring his protests, and when she stepped back she couldn't help but laugh at how red his face had gotten.

"Sh-shut up, you!"

"Don't worry, I won't tell anyone how embarrassed you were by a simple hug, Mr. Pirate Hunter," Hazel teased, ignoring his glare. "Hey, think of it this way: by helping teach me, it can help you improve as well! One of the best ways to learn something is to teach it to someone else, after all!"

"Yeah, yeah…" He muttered, and they made their way back to Luffy and Nami.

* * *

"Thanks! I owe you guys," Usopp said when they'd all made it back to the beach. "Without you, I couldn't have saved the village."

"What are you talking about?" Zoro grinned from his place against the cliff. "It was all you. You made me."

"Me too," Luffy piped up from where he was laying on the ground, covered in so many cuts and scratches that Hazel had an urge to just wrap him in one large bandage.

"I sure as hell didn't do anything," She muttered instead, only slightly pouty. Her shoulder had finally stopped bleeding, but it still stung like a bitch.

"Who cares about the village? We got treasure!" Nami chimed in, happily cuddling a large sack. Hazel glanced to the younger woman, taking in her unhurt state, and a weight was lifted off her stinging shoulders. She'd at least done one good thing today…

* * *

"Whew! I got it out!" Luffy exclaimed, pulling a fish bone out of his throat.

"Hmph," Zoro huffed from beside him. "You need to work on your fish-bone-eating technique."

"I've got news for you two," Nami said, holding up her own fish bone. "Normal people don't eat this part."

"Don't bother explaining, Nami," Hazel said with a smile. "They are so far from normal."

They were back in the tavern, all patched up and rested. Nami had changed clothes, though where she'd gotten them Hazel wasn't sure. She'd apparently found some for her as well, but told Hazel that until she found a way to shower there'd be no point in wearing them. Hazel had told her she hadn't done anything, and therefore deserved to sit in her stink like the rest of them. That hadn't gone over well, and now Hazel had no new clothes, and still no way to shower.

"The food's gone," Zoro stated. "Shall we go?"

"I guess," Luffy agreed, munching once again on his fish bone. The door to the tavern opened with a chime, allowing entry to a young woman who headed their way. "Hi, Miss Kaya!"

"I found you!" Kaya made her way over to their table, out of her nightgown for the first time in a very long time. Hazel was glad to see her out and about, happy to know that morning's ordeal hadn't scared her too bad.

"Shouldn't you be recuperating?" Nami asked, concern lacing her voice.

"I'll be fine," Kaya assured. "My illness for the past year was caused by the shock and sadness of losing both my parents. Usopp brought my spirits up, but I can't depend on others forever. Anyway, you four needed a ship, is that right?" Luffy let out a gasp.

"Are you gonna give us a ship?!"

As they left the tavern, Kaya led them back to the beach where they'd fought just that morning. As they descended the hill, there on the water was a decently-sized vessel, with an adorable sheep figurehead.

"A caravel!" Nami exclaimed, her excitement echoed by the others' gasps and smiles. Hazel stared up at the ship in awe; she couldn't believe they would finally have a real ship. She almost wanted to cry at the thought that they'd reached this milestone.

"Behold!" Kaya's butler, who looked suspiciously similar to the ship's figurehead, began explaining their new vessel. "She's not the newest model, but I designed her myself! She's a carvel-make caravel, with lateen sails and a central stern rudder." Hazel had no idea what that meant, but it sounded cool. "I present to you, the Going Merry! Are you the ones who helped Usopp chase away the Black Cat Pirates?" They all nodded. "I thought you'd be taller…"

"Wait, really?" Hazel asked, but was ignored as Luffy turned to Kaya.

"You're really gonna give us this ship?!"

"Yes, please take it."

"I'll explain the rigging," The butler began, facing Luffy and Hazel, who both stared at him with serious expressions on their faces. "First, regarding the adjustment of the yard with the clew garnet…"

...Huh?

"You're wasting your breath with these three," Nami interrupted. "Talk to me."

"What a great ship!" Luffy exclaimed, free from the complicated conversation.

"Luffy, look! It's got a big sail!" Hazel grinned, wrapping her arms around her brother's shoulders and doing a sort of happy dance. He grinned back, just as enthusiastic, if not even more so.

"I've stocked it with everything you might need at sea," Kaya explained.

"Thank you! It leaves nothing to beat tired, Miss Kaya!" Luffy said, drawing an odd look from Hazel.

"That's 'leaves nothing to be desired', you idiot," Zoro corrected, though Luffy paid him no mind, and continued to stare in awe at their new ship.

"WAAAAHHHH!" They all turned around to look for the source of the noise, finding an oddly round shape careening down the hill towards them. "Stop me!"

"Is that Usopp's voice?" Hazel asked.

"What's he up to now?" Luffy asked, unconcerned with Usopp's predicament.

"We should stop him," Zoro said, sounding equally unconcerned. "He might wreck our ship."

"I'm sure it's uncomfortable too, after the day he's already had," Hazel commented, only slightly more concerned than her crewmates. As the Usopp-ball rolled closer, the three lifted their legs, planting their feet firmly on his face.

"Thanks."

"No problem," The three said in unison. As they made their way onto the ship, Usopp said his goodbyes to Kaya on the beach. Hazel tried to give them their space, but Luffy stared down at them from the railing.

"Luffy, it's rude to eavesdrop," She said, coming over to scold him.

"I'm waiting for Usopp!" He said, as if that made it ok, and Hazel just rolled her eyes in exasperation. At least he'd said thank you for the ship.

"You guys take care. See you around," Usopp said, causing the siblings to look at him in confusion.

"Why?" Luffy asked.

"Huh? Why?" Usopp repeated, looking annoyed. "That's not very friendly. Since we're all pirates, we might cross paths someday…" Hazel bit back a laugh. Maybe they weren't all on the same page after all.

"Stop babbling and get on board," Zoro told him, leaving no room for argument.

"Huh?"

"We're friends now, aren't we?" Luffy asked, genuinely still confused.

Usopp stared up at them in awe, eyes wide as he processed what was said and what it meant. Then as it dawned on him, he leapt into the air, a wide grin on his face. "Yeah! I get to be captain, right?!"

"Don't be dumb! I'm the captain!"


	6. Chapter 6

**Hi! I'm not dead! I won't take up too much of your time with an author's note, but I just wanna give a quick thank you to those who have reviewed so far! Feedback means a lot to me! I hope you enjoy this chapter; things are really starting to heat up! Next chapter should be out much quicker - I'm really excited to get into this next arc!**

* * *

"Hmm…" Hazel hummed, catching the attention of her ever-growing crew.

"What is it?" Nami asked, taking her eyes off the horizon to glance at the older woman. It had been about 30 minutes since they'd left Syrup Village, the island now barely a speck in the distance, and celebrations were ready to erupt over their new vessel. The Going Merry cut through the water effortlessly, and Hazel couldn't blame them for the excitement; but…

"I hate to be the one to stop a party before it can begin, but three of us need baths. Now." Nami pulled a face, glancing over the three in question, then nodded vigorously.

"Yeah, yep, you do! Celebrating can wait!"

"Awww, c'mon Hazel! It's a real ship!" Luffy pouted, waves of stink rolling off of him. "I'm the captain, and I say celebration first!"

"Well,_ I'm_ the oldest, and _I_ say bath first!"

"Seconded!" Nami raised her hand, glaring at the absolute goblin of a boy.

"You know, Luffy," Usopp began, sliding in close to Luffy conspiratorially. "If you let me be captain, you'll never have to take a bath again!" **Bonk! **"Ow!"

"Stop with the 'captain' thing, we already got one!" Hazel scolded him, then turned her attention back to the other two. "Bath. Now. _You_ especially!" She jabbed a finger into Zoro's chest.

"Oi! I don't have to listen to you! Besides, I don't smell that bad," he glared down at her, and they stood there locked in a heated stare, the whole time Hazel contemplating the consequences of just pushing him into the sea. Nah, she'd probably be the one to have to go get him.

"I'm gonna count to three, and when I'm finished at least one of you better be in that bathroom scrubbing yourselves down, or so help me I'll make you both go at the same time!"

"Ha! I'd like to see you try!" Zoro snarked, crossing his arms over his chest and smirking down at her. Luffy mimicked his stance, crossing his arms with an indignant pout. Hazel merely leaned back, crossing her arms, and tapping her foot, staring defiantly at both boys.

"One," **tap.** Luffy gulped, but stood his ground. Zoro's expression remained unchanged.

"Two," **tap tap. **Zoro raised a brow, still unfazed. Luffy tensed, recalling his childhood with every tap of her foot; but still he stood defiant. Nami and Usopp began to tremble in the background, intimidated by the angry waves emanating from the violet-haired woman.

"Three," and without any further warning, Hazel grabbed both boys by the ear, ignoring their yelps as she dragged them through storage and threw them into the bathroom. She shut the door just in time as they banged their fists against it, struggling futilely to open the door as they yelled obscenities through it. "Usopp, dear," she called, ignoring the shouts behind her. "Would you be so kind as to draw up some water for them? I'd do it myself, but I'm a bit preoccupied."

Usopp nodded furiously, glad to be on her good side still, and ran to do as she asked. Nami walked up to her, helping to maneuver some barrels in front of the door as a sort of barrier. When they had three of the heavy objects situated in front of the bathroom, Hazel plopped herself on top of one, crossing her legs and acting as though nothing had even happened. "Thank you, Nami. I promise I'll clean myself up when they're done. Could I borrow some clothes for now?" The navigator merely nodded, not sure how to react to what she'd just witnessed; but then her eyes fell on the woman's shoulder, still red with blood from earlier that day, and she sighed.

"You should at least get your shoulder cleaned up! Come on," Nami grabbed Hazel's hand, gently pulling her up. "Those two will be fine without you standing over them; and if either of them break anything, I'll charge them each one million beli!" She yelled, and the door stopped shaking. "See?" She grinned, much to Hazel's amusement.

"Alright, alright...Oi! Zoro!" She called back through the door before leaving. "Do me a favor and make sure Luffy doesn't drown in there!"

* * *

"And...done!" Nami declared, tying the bandage tight so it wouldn't slip off. "That should hold for now, but come see me after your shower and I'll help make sure you have a fresh one."

"Thanks, Nami," Hazel smiled at the girl, pleased at how much better she felt. "Are you sure we have enough bandages for that, though? I feel like we're gonna go through a lot, and it feels a bit like a waste."

"We have plenty," Nami insisted, standing up from the bed to put the supplies away. The room was a modest size, with two small beds and a couch, with a desk against the wall. The room had originally been designed for Kaya, and it showed in the decorations; from the fancy bedspread she currently sat on, to the paintings of blue skies on the walls. The second bed was decidedly less fancy, Hazel noticed, and she suspected that had been added at the last minute. She didn't mind though, anything was better than that little dinghy they'd been living in. She couldn't wait to explore the rest of the ship.

"You ok?" She asked Nami, eyes landing on the girl still stood across the room. Her eyes were downcast, chewing on her lip with furrowed eyebrows. Nami waited a moment before answering, seeming to mull over her words. Hazel waited patiently, growing concerned at the girl's behavior. "Nami?"

"You got hurt…" Nami started, chewing her cheek and looking away; then she took a deep breath, steadying herself, and continued. "You got hurt pushing me out of the way. Why would you do that?" Hazel stared at her wide-eyed, unsure if she was angry or not.

"We're friends, aren't we?" Hazel asked, as though the answer was obvious. To her, at least, it was. Nami apparently hadn't thought so, as Hazel caught the way she clenched her fist; but before she could ask about it, there was a thumping from overhead.

"Oi! Hazel! We're clean!" Luffy yelled through the floorboards, halting any further conversation. Hazel could hear the grumbled threats of a certain swordsman, but ignored it in favor of grabbing the clothes she borrowed from Nami: a pair of shorts, and a pink tank top. She wasn't sure where she'd gotten so many sets of clothes, but was far too grateful they were similar sizes to question it too much.

"Thank you, Luffy!" Hazel called, grinning at the increased grumbling Zoro was directing her way, and she made her way back upstairs. She entered the storage room right as Zoro was leaving, and she sent him a winning smile despite his glare. "Oh, look at you! You're almost handsome under all that grime!" She teased, delighting at the blush that bloomed over Zoro's tanned face.

"You-!" He glared at her grinning face. "That moron got water everywhere, and he shot soap in my eye!" Good Lord, was he actually whining to her? If only she could record this moment for future blackmail.

"Aww, poor baby," Hazel cooed, enjoying the annoyed expression on his face. "Maybe next time you'll listen to me first, and I won't have to resort to desperate measures," she countered, knowing exactly how her brother could be in the bath. For a devil fruit user, he sure knew how to use water effectively. Instead of answering, Zoro wisely chose to ignore her, sauntering onto the deck to take a well-deserved nap, while Hazel just shook her head, and entered the bathroom.

* * *

"It's finished!" Came Luffy's yell as Hazel exited the bathroom some time later, running her hand through wet, purple curls, and feeling loads better than she had in days. Luffy held up a black piece of fabric, a rather crudely drawn skull wearing a familiar straw hat placed right in the middle. "Luffy's pirate flag! I already had the mark thought up!"

"It's ready?" Hazel asked, excitedly running to join the group. Her eyes widened when she saw the black flag, hand quickly covering the laugh that threatened to escape her at the crude drawing. On the one hand, she shared Luffy's pride at finally having their own flag; at finally seeing the jolly roger he'd decided on years ago made real. On the other hand…

"That's our mark?"

"This guy's a little low on design sense," Usopp muttered, jaw dropping open.

"Hmm...or maybe it's avant-garde?" Nami responded, palm on her chin.

"A pirate flag ought to inspire terror," Zoro said matter-of-factly. "And this is pretty scary."

"You guys are so mean," Hazel murmured, pouting. Luffy just looked over at them with a wide, hopeful grin.

"You like it? Huh?" Hazel smiled kindly at him.

"I love it, Luffy, but…" She struggled to tell him. Luckily, she didn't need to finish her sentence, as just at that moment Usopp spoke up.

"Your painting stinks, Luffy!" He said, ignoring Hazel's scolding gasp of his name. "Let me try!"

"Why would yours be any better?"

"I've drawn graffiti on walls for 50 years straight! When it comes to painting, I'm in a league all my own!"

"50 years, huh?" Hazel muttered under her breath, side-eyeing him.

"Awesome!" Luffy yelled, not catching her comment. "50 years?!"

"That means he's an old man now!" Zoro scolded.

"Not only that, he must have 5 or 6 grandkids by now!" Nami teased, much to Usopp's chagrin.

"That's awesome too!"

"Hey!"

It was very fortunate for him that Luffy was as easy going as he was, accepting Usopp's criticism with barely a pout as he handed over the flag-making supplies. The crew stood around, watching as Usopp worked quickly to create a new flag design. After about 20 minutes, the long-nosed boy stood, proudly showing off his work; there was one problem, however…

"That's not our mark!" Luffy, Zoro, and Hazel yelled, smacking Usopp in the back of the head. Another 20 minutes later, and they finally had a complete flag, with a much more polished version of Luffy's original design displayed proudly on the front.

"Good, I like it!" Nami exclaimed, pleased with Usopp's work. Hazel nodded her head approvingly, picking up the scrapped designs to clean up a bit.

"That's great!" Luffy said, proud of the new design. "Let's paint it on the sail too!" Usopp nodded, and after carefully navigating his way to the main sail with all his tools, quickly got to work painting a second jolly roger on the fabric. Hazel watched him from the deck, both admiring his work and making sure he didn't fall, but before she knew it, the sail was complete, and Usopp was back on solid ground. Er...ship deck.

"There, it's complete!" Luffy's shout filled the air. "Our pirate ship, the Going Merry, is ready!" Hazel flung an arm around her brother's shoulder, squeezing him in close as they both gazed up at the sail.

"We're really doin' it, Luff…" She said softly, matching his grin. They glanced over at their growing crew, all resting on deck after raising their jolly roger. "We should celebrate! Come on, let's look around for some food and drinks, hm?"

"Yeah!" Luffy yelled, and he followed behind her.

"I should probably take the kitchen so we'll actually have food to share with everyone," Hazel smirked at Luffy's pouting face. "Don't give me that look. You take a look in storage for anything we can use to turn this into a real party." At the word "party" Luffy's pout disappeared, replaced by a wide grin as he ran to the storage room. Hazel just chuckled, heading upstairs to the kitchen to look around.

The galley of the Going Merry was warm and inviting, though maybe a tad plain. The walls and floors matched the oakwood of the rest of the caravel, with the exception of the gray stone-brick kitchen area to the left of the door. In the middle of the room was a short pole, about waist-height, with a matching sheep figurehead at the top. From what Hazel could understand, this was the steering mechanism. She stepped around the dining table and benches to search through the fridge at the back of the room. They'd probably have to stop for more rations before too long (especially with Luffy's appetite), but for now it seemed well-stocked.

She had just loaded her arms with food when suddenly the ship began to shake, a loud **BOOM!** ringing in her ears. Setting everything carefully on the table, Hazel ran back out to the deck, her shock mirrored on the faces of Zoro, Nami, and Usopp. The four ran to the top deck, ready for whatever danger there may be, but found only Luffy standing there, a cannon pointed vaguely in the direction of a large rock.

"What are you firing at?!" Zoro yelled, reaching the deck first. Luffy appeared unperturbed by the outburst, continuing to stare calmly at the spot his cannonball had sunk.

"That rock. It's cannon practice," he said simply, causing Hazel's brow to twitch in annoyance.

"What happened to the party, Luffy? You were supposed to be looking for supplies!"

"That's how I found the cannonballs! I wanted to practice, but it doesn't shoot right," he whined while Hazel facepalmed.

"That's silly, let me try," Usopp said, walking up behind them to stand by the cannon. Hazel stood back, arms crossed, irked at the sudden change in plans. She really should've known better than to have Luffy help.

"Are you pouting?" Zoro murmured in her ear, causing her to jump.

"One more word and you're going in the ocean," she warned, glaring at him. The swordsman only smirked, deciding this was payback for making him shower with Luffy earlier, and the two turned back to "cannon practice".

"Hit that rock," Luffy ordered, pointing at the spot he'd originally tried to hit. It was a lone, tall rock, smack dab in the middle of the sea; the perfect target. Usopp put his hands on the cannon, maneuvering it into a different angle.

"Judging from your first shot…" the boy muttered, making a few last adjustments. "This should do it…"

**BOOM! **The rock exploded.

"Wow! You hit it on your first try!" "Wow! I hit it on my first try!" Luffy and Usopp exclaimed in unison, both impressed by the crumbling structure. Hazel's gray eyes widened at the considerably shorter rock, amazed at the boy's skill. Yasopp's son indeed…

"Wow, good shot, Usopp!" She told him, placing a hand on his shoulder. The boy quickly straightened, his voice putting on a rather haughty air as he bragged.

"See?! Didn't I tell you? I always hit what I aim at. If you're impressed, just call me 'Captain'." Hazel rolled her eyes, letting it slide this time. Let the kid brag a bit; she doubted any of them would've gotten that on the first shot.

"No, I'll call you our sniper!" Luffy declared, and though it wasn't the title Usopp wanted, Hazel could see he was still brimming with pride.

"Well then," She interrupted. "Why don't we celebrate our new ship, _and_ our sniper with some lunch?"

* * *

"Ok, you can be captain...for now," Usopp said, sitting at the dining table with Nami and Luffy, sipping some tea. Zoro sat against the wall, not asleep but resting his head against the wood, while Hazel worked in the kitchen to make them some sandwiches. "But if you ever show cowardice, I'll take over in a heartbeat." She held back her snort; like that would ever happen.

"Fine with me," Luffy agreed, likely thinking the same thing. "I've been thinking! There's one position we need to fill before we reach the Grand Line!" Hazel smiled, piling plates with sandwiches.

"This galley has all the equipment," Nami pointed out, moving her book out of the way as Hazel placed a plate in front of her. "I'll do it, for a price."

"I can help out too, though I only really know the basics," Hazel said, putting another plate on the barrel next to Zoro's head.

"Good," he said, glancing up at her as she moved past. "That skill is essential for a long voyage."

"Then it's agreed," Luffy declared, leaning across the table, and nearly knocking Usopp's plate over. "A pirate ship must have...a musician!"

"Are you nuts?!"

"I thought you were going to say something smart for once!"

"This is piracy, not a pleasure cruise!"

"Pirates have to sing, don't they?" Luffy said, trying to win over his crewmates.

"Oh, Luffy…" Hazel shook her head, fond but still exasperated by her brother's one-track mind. "We can sing _after_ we find someone who can cook more than five dishes, _without_ draining us dry financially." She side-eyed the orange-haired navigator currently batting her eyelashes in her direction.

"COME OUT AND FIGHT, DOGS!" A voice shouted from outside. Usopp jumped so bad he dropped his tea cup, and it was only because Hazel had been standing right there that she'd managed to catch it before it shattered. No luck on the tea, though. She glared at the door, muscles tense and ready to fight. "I'LL MURDER THE LOT OF YOU!" Outside, they could hear the sounds of barrels being smashed, and Luffy ran out to see what was going on, Hazel hot on his heels.

"Hey! Who are you?!" Luffy yelled as they stepped outside. From what Hazel could see, there was only one enemy. The man glared up at them through his sunglasses (she assumed anyway, as she couldn't actually see his eyes), brandishing his sword as he responded.

"What's it to you who I am?!" He yelled, swiping his sword at Luffy's feet, tearing off the top of the deck's railing. Luffy leapt over the sword, landing on the main deck behind the man currently terrorizing their ship. Hazel jumped back, her back hitting the door as she avoided sword swipe at her gut. She could see Nami and Usopp pressing their noses to the glass, giving her a look that clearly meant "do you need help?" She shook her head, signalling for them to stay put, and turned her attention back to the man who'd shifted his focus onto Luffy. "I've claimed the bounty on the world's most infamous pirates. How dare you nobodies try to kill my partner?!" He swung the sword back once again, ready to strike out at the rubber-man.

"Partner?! Who? Where?" Luffy yelled, gearing up for the incoming attack. Hazel looked around for something to help fight him off with, but it wasn't needed. As the man lunged, Luffy jumped, grabbing a hold of the man's face. As he landed on his feet, he flipped the man over his head, shouting, "Sorry, but I can't let you wreck our ship!" He landed. The man went flying forward, slamming face-first against the side of the storage room. He slumped to the ground, blood dripping from his nose.

"A hair's breadth from death…" He murmured. Hazel made her way to the main deck, nudging at the man's prone form with her foot.

"How dramatic…" She mused, taking a better look at the guy now that he wasn't actively trying to kill them. He had close cropped, dark hair, and a rather large tattoo on his left cheek.

"What the heck was that all about?" Luffy asked, plopping down on the deck, catching his hat that had fallen off during the struggle. Hazel shrugged, glancing up as she heard the door to the galley open. Zoro poked his head over the missing railing, brow raising at the sight of the man who'd attacked them.

"Huh? Well, I'll be...it's Johnny!" Hazel looked at him in surprise.

"You know this clown?"

"Z-Zoro! My brother!" The man, Johnny, yelled as he got to his feet, the fight forgotten.

"What's going on?" Zoro asked, ignoring Hazel for now. "Where's Yosaku?"

"So...you know him, and there's two of them?" Hazel tried again, only to be met with a withering glare from the swordsman and his apparent friend. She huffed, glancing away to see Nami and Usopp still pressed to the galley window.

"That's just it!" Johnny turned back to Zoro. "Listen to me, Yosaku is…he's…" The man couldn't seem to finish his sentence, and when he realized this he turned around, running around to the side of the deck. The three followed him in confusion, surprised to see another small ship anchored next to them, presumably Johnny's. The man disappeared inside his ship, reappearing a moment later carrying another man, this one looking pale, bloody, sickly and near death. With Zoro's help, they lay the man across the main deck, and now joined by Nami and Usopp, listened to Johnny tell his tale.

"Dying?!"

"He was fit as a fiddle a few days ago…" Johnny explained, holding back tears over his partner's plight. "Then he went pale and started passing out! I don't know what's wrong! His teeth are falling out, and he's bleeding from old scars." Hazel placed a hand on her chin; those symptoms seemed familiar, but she couldn't remember why. "I didn't know what to do, so I went to get some rest and think on that rock. Then one of you shot a cannonball at me!" Luffy and Usopp looked up in shock, immediately bowing and apologizing.

"Forgive us!"

"That's history, forget it," Johnny told them, head in his hands and body shaking as he tried and failed to hold back his tears. "What good are apologies, anyway?!" Now Luffy and Usopp were crying with him. "Our reputation has grown. Pirates fear the names of Johnny and Yosaku. He's my trusted partner, we've hunted pirates together for years! My brother's gonna...is he gonna die?"

Hazel swallowed; she had to admit, it didn't look good for Yosaku. Even Zoro looked worried. She walked over, placing a hand gently on Johnny's shoulder, all forgiven between them for wrecking the ship. She'd react the same way if the roles were reversed. His body continued to shake with unshed tears, and she gave his shoulder a comforting squeeze; it only resulted in him crying harder, and so she did her best to provide comfort, rubbing circles into his shoulder with her thumb. It was all she knew how to do right now. If only she could figure out what was wrong with Yosaku…

"Don't be stupid!" Nami yelled suddenly, causing Hazel to look at her in shock, and the others to glare.

"What the hell, Nami?!" Zoro scolded, fists clenched and glaring daggers at the young woman.

"How dare you make light of my partner's death?!" Johnny yelled, shrugging off Hazel's hand as he grabbed his sword.

"Luffy! Usopp! There's some limes in the galley! Squeeze some and bring me the juice!" Nami ordered, ignoring the men who looked ready to cut her to pieces. Hazel, meanwhile, had an epiphany at the word "limes", and snapped her fingers in recognition.

"Oh, duh! Limes are in the fridge! The fridge!" She called out after her brother, feeling stupid for not realizing what it was sooner. "Nami, I'm so glad you're here…" she muttered, smiling at the younger woman. The navigator looked away, looking slightly uncomfortable, but Hazel figured that maybe she just wasn't that good with genuine praise, and let it go. The boys came back out a moment later, a mug of lime juice in Luffy's hands, and began forcing it down Yosaku's throat.

"Limes?" Johnny asked as Luffy yelled at his partner to drink.

"It's scurvy," Nami told him as Hazel nodded.

"With any luck, he should be fine in a few days," the older woman finished. "Sorry, I should've recognized it sooner."

"Really, sister?!" Johnny yelled, looking between the two women.

"Don't call me that," Nami scolded, though Hazel was unbothered. "A generation ago, scurvy was the bane of sailors, but it's simply caused by poor nutrition. Fruits and vegetables rot on long voyages…"

"This is why I still make you eat your fruits and veggies, Luffy," Hazel muttered to her brother, who was currently gazing at Nami with awe.

"Wow, you're like a doctor!"

"I always knew you were a brilliant woman," Usopp said proudly.

"These are basic things you should know if you expect to survive at sea, morons!"

At that moment, the previously corpse-like Yosaku jumped to his feet, dancing and cheering in circles with his partner. "Saved by lime juice!"

"Good job, brother!"

"You're not well enough to dance!" Nami scolded, but she was thoroughly ignored by the two men.

"Introduction time," Johnny said, suddenly stopping his dance. "I'm Johnny."

"And I'm Yosaku," said his partner, lighting a cigarette. "We're brother Zoro's old bounty hunting partners. Pleased to meet you!"

"Should you be smoking?" Hazel asked, surprised by the man's quick recovery. Maybe he just had that same stupid immune system Luffy did; that kid never got sick, and always recovered from injuries really quickly. Yosaku waved her off, taking a drag off the cigarette in response.

"I don't know how to thank all of you, I was sure I was a goner."

"I still can't believe it," Johnny spoke up, looking at their swordsman. "Pirate Hunter Zoro...is a pirate!"

"We love a bit of irony around here," Hazel joked, earning a look from Zoro. She just smiled, but it dropped quickly when Yosaku began to spit up blood.

"Yosaku!"

"Lie down and rest!" Zoro and Hazel both yelled at the man. Hazel walked over, grabbing Yosaku by the head, and forcing him to lie down. Yosaku collapsed on the deck, passing out instantly; a quick glance told everyone he was still ok, however, and the group dispersed a bit, leaving Johnny to look after his partner.

"Learn anything?" Nami asked, sitting on the stairs. Hazel sat beside her, legs stretched out, and leaned against the side of the ship.

"A long voyage on the high seas is fraught with hidden dangers," Zoro answered, sounding a bit like a schoolboy reciting a lesson.

"Those guys would be dead if we hadn't come along," Usopp mused. Hazel had to agree; they'd been extremely lucky that Luffy had decided on cannon practice instead of a party today. "We still need someone who can transform the ship's stores into something edible. A ship's cook."

"He's right, it's an absolute necessity!" Nami agreed.

"I also vote in favor of sea cook!" Hazel declared, raising her hand in the air. Luffy grinned, tongue lolling out of his mouth.

"Ok! We'll look for a sea cook!" He agreed. That was easy. "What good is a ship without decent grub?"

"You saying my food ain't decent?" Hazel teased, no fire behind her words. Sure, she'd had to at least learn to cook some basic staples to provide for them as kids, but she was no chef.

"Brother! Brother!" Came a voice to their right, drawing attention from the crew's short meeting.

"Speak, Johnny," Zoro told him, and Hazel had to laugh a little at how much these men clearly respected him. That was a story she needed to hear sometime…

"If you need a cook, I know where to find one," Johnny began, a smile on his face now that his partner was (mostly) in the clear. "But whether he'll join up with you is another matter…"

"A sea restaurant?" The Straw Hats asked when he'd finished explaining.

"It's two or three days sailing from here, but be careful, it's near the Grand Line. Some rough customers frequent that place. Brother, they say even that Hawk-eye you were hunting goes there." That piqued Zoro's interest, and in turn Hazel's. She glanced over at him, noting the almost feral look in his eye at the mention of this "Hawk-eye". He was clearly excited about something, she just didn't know what. "I'll lead you there if you want!" Johnny said, walking past the swordsman. He was met with cheers by Luffy and Usopp, and Nami got up to adjust their course.

Hazel continued sitting there, watching the expression on Zoro's face. It was as though he was still processing what Johnny had said, like it hadn't sunk in yet. Who was this "Hawk-eye"?

"You seem excited," She piped up, not one to beat around the bush, and drawing him from his thoughts. He glanced at her, expression slightly more guarded than before. "'I followed a pirate I was after out to sea', that's what you said when we first met, right?" His eyes widened, and she winked at him. "I'm a writer, it's my job to remember things like that. Look, I'm not gonna pry into your business...just, be careful, ok?" With that she stood up, stretching, and headed back to the galley to finish her sandwich from earlier, leaving the grass-haired swordsman to stare after her.

* * *

That night, the newly christened Straw Hat Pirates finally celebrated their new vessel. Hazel and Nami worked together in the kitchen to whip up enough food to satisfy everyone (especially Luffy, who had hovered around them the entire time they worked), while Zoro raided the wine rack in the back of the room. Usopp and Luffy sat with arms laid across each other's shoulders, singing sea shanties loudly and off-key. They were joined by Johnny and Yosaku, who looked to be feeling much better after some rest, and who were currently grouped up with Zoro in the back of the room, reminiscing and catching up on each other's adventures.

"But why the 'Straw Hats'?" Usopp whined, once again trying to weasel his way into a more important role. Hazel set another plate in front of Luffy, not remotely phased as the boy inhaled what had once been about a pound of noodles. She had to hand it to the sniper, though; the boy was persistent. To answer his question, she simply pointed at her brother, specifically at the accessory resting on his head.

"Hat," She said simply, dead-eyed expression in place as she turned back to her cooking. If Usopp had a response, she didn't hear it, as she was immediately pulled into another conversation by Nami.

"Haven't we made enough? If we keep cooking, we won't have any food left!"

"Does he look like he's done eating?" Hazel laughed, pointing her wooden spoon behind her at Luffy. "Besides, we're getting a cook tomorrow, right? We'll be fine!"

"You're way too calm about this!" The navigator scolded, watching in horror as Luffy devoured yet another plate of food, belly expanding to impossible sizes to accommodate it all. "If you're not more careful about rationing your supplies, you could end up starving!"

"Relax, Nami," Hazel said, calmly handing her a much smaller plate of noodles than what she'd previously made. "One night of overindulgence never hurt anybody. Besides, our crew's expanding, we've got a ship and a jolly roger, we've already been in numerous dangerous situations and survived despite it all...we deserve to celebrate!" Despite her words, Hazel did reach over to turn off the stove, grabbing her own plate piled high with food as she led Nami over to the table. "And if it makes you feel any better," she whispered before sitting down. "I already stashed some non-perishables in a barrel downstairs, just in case."

"Oi, Hazel! Whatcha whispering about?"

"Nothing, Luffy!" With a conspiratorial wink to Nami, she sat down beside her brother, listening happily to the flow of conversation around her. If she closed her eyes, it was almost like being back in Party's Bar, all those years ago; singing sea shanties, drinking contests in the corner, and even-

"Hazel! Tell us a story!" Luffy shouted, and she opened her eyes with a small smile.

"Alright, alright," Hazel laughed. "Let's see here…"

And even that…

* * *

Hours later, when they'd finally had their fill of partying, Hazel put on her best "I'm-In-Charge Voice" and declared that it was now, officially, bedtime. She was only met with a few grumbles from the youngest of their members, the oldest among them having already passed out around the floor, but she received no argument as the boys made their way to their room. The only one who didn't seem tired was Zoro, though Hazel chalked that up to his 52 naps throughout the day, and after confirming that he'd keep watch over the anchored ship, she followed Nami into their room.

The navigator silently made her way to the nicer of the two beds, not even bothering to change into pajamas before collapsing onto the covers. Hazel meandered her way over to the less fancy bed, reaching underneath to pull out her pack before sitting down on the covers. She turned on the lamp beside her bed, thankful that it didn't flood the entire room with light and disturb the other girl, then pulled out her notebook to quickly jot down the day's events before she fell asleep.

"You can use the desk you know," came Nami's groggy voice from across the room. Hazel glanced up at the object in question, nestled neatly by the staircase, then shook her head.

"I'll be fine, I only need to write a few things down quick," she assured the navigator, before another thought struck her. "Speaking of which, we might wanna either look into a second writing desk, or set up a schedule for using that one. Since we both have a need for it, we'll need to find a way to share; and no, I'm not paying you when it's my turn," she joked, though Nami didn't laugh. Hazel turned her gaze to the orange-haired woman, currently facing away from her on the bed. Something about her behavior that day had struck Hazel as odd; it could all have been a coincidence, but she couldn't help but feel as though Nami didn't plan on being a permanent addition to the crew…

_"I won't become a pirate! Let's just say we'll join forces...work together for a common goal!"_

Sighing, Hazel finished scribbling out her last sentence, sliding the notebook and pencil onto the end table beside her. She clicked off the bedside lamp, snuggling under the warm covers, and tried to pretend she didn't feel a bit saddened at the thought that Nami might not stick around.

* * *

"Oi, quit squirming!"

"Make me!" Hazel pouted in response to Zoro's scolding. She was currently leaning up against him, trying and failing to put a sentence together, hence the squirming. Instead of words, small random doodles dotted the margins of her notebook, and she wondered if she'd have an easier time if she got up and ate something.

"Jeez, you're a terrible artist," Zoro told her, glancing at the notebook's contents over her shoulder. "Aren't you supposed to be writing?"

"It's all part of the process," she said, putting a mysterious air in her voice. "Besides, aren't _you_ supposed to be training? Or something?" She felt him shrug against her.

"Nah, it's naptime." She turned to look at him, incredulous.

"Again? You've already napped twice today! It's not even lunchtime!" The swordsman just shrugged again. "How are you supposed to become the 'World's Greatest Swordsman' if you're sleeping all the time?"

"Hey, there's no problem that can't be solved with a good nap!" He said, smirk on his face as he settled back to close his eyes. Unfortunately for him, his response had caused the woman to whip around fully, looking at him with a mixture of mirth and curiosity.

"Well, what if you're in a situation where you can't nap?" He just pointed to the bundle of swords laying next to him.

"Swords."

"Oh yeah? Well...what if you can't use those either?" He just gave her a look that said "really?", to which she shrugged as if to say "go with it".

"Booze." At that she rolled her eyes, turning back to her notebook. Zoro closed his eyes again, figuring the conversation was done and over with, but he'd miscalculated just how badly the violet-haired woman wanted to procrastinate.

"OOF!" His eyes bugged out of his skull as Hazel suddenly leapt across his stomach, reaching out to grab his swords from his other side. He'd barely registered what she was doing when he reached out to stop her, but the woman was quick and had gotten the drop on him, and before he could take his weapons back she'd tossed them across the deck. "Dammit, woman!"

"Usopp, catch!" She yelled, laughter in her voice as the boy screamed. He caught them just in time, shock apparent on his face as he registered the angry look on the swordsman's face.

"Hazel?! Do you want me to get killed?!" He yelped again as Zoro glared at him, fury emanating from every inch of him.

"Hahaha! Run, Usopp!" Luffy yelled from the figurehead, thoroughly entertained like the chaos demon he was.

"Luffy, you're next!" Zoro yelled, finally pushing up from the floor; but before he could, Hazel wrapped her arms around both his legs, settling her head on his lap and fighting against every attempt he made to stand.

"Oh wow, you're right! Napping is great! Good thing I've got this nice pillow to lay on!" She cackled, hanging on tight even as he finally stood up, trying to inch his way over to Usopp who was still screaming and running for his life. "Whatcha gonna do, Swordsman?! You've got no booze, no swords, and you can't nap your way out of this one!" At that the swordsman paused, a dark look coming over his face as he smirked down at her. Dread clawed her gut at the scheming look in the man's eyes; eyes that were currently getting closer.

"OOF!" Hazel wheezed, the wind knocking out of her as Zoro's body rammed her against the deck. "Holy shit," she managed to get out, failing to catch her breath through the giggles still escaping her. "You're so fucking heavy!" She tried pushing him off, surprised to find even he was chuckling a bit at the situation. _Score one for me! _Then came another voice, much too close for comfort.

"DOGPILE!"

"LUFFY, NO!" **SLAM!** Both swordsman and record-keeper were crushed under their captain's weight, laughter turned to groans as the boy continued to shake in hysterics. Through watering eyes, Hazel could see Usopp tentatively approach, still clutching Zoro's swords in his arms.

"You guys are crazy…" he muttered, still looking terrified. Hazel tried to give him a smile, but found it a tad difficult underneath the weight of two men.

"Cut it out, you guys!" Nami yelled from the upper deck. "I can't concentrate on our course with all that racket!" Luffy finally crawled off his crewmates.

"Sorry, Nami!" He yelled, looking anything but. Finally free, Zoro stood up, holding a hand out for Hazel to pull herself up with. She took it, grateful, and dusted herself off as he took his swords back from Usopp. Lucky for both of them, it seemed the swordsman had no hard feelings; at least, not after seeing they were undamaged.

"Sorry, Nami!" Hazel called out, more sincere than her brother, and the younger woman just nodded, accepting the apology before turning back to her work. The chaos subsided, everyone went back to what they'd been doing, including Hazel. She still didn't have much in the way of sentences, but her brain felt a bit clearer after the distraction.

"Here we are! The sea restaurant!" Johnny yelled, crossing over to their ship about 20 minutes later. "Brother Zoro! Brother Luffy! Brother Usopp! Brother Nami! Sister Hazel!"

"Does he have to call me 'brother'?" Nami asked, annoyed.

"Well, you did say not to call you sister," Hazel reminded her, amusement clear in her voice. The girl just gave her a short glare, to which Hazel surrendered before joining the others on the upper deck.

A short distance away was a large, colorful vessel; a cross between a boat and a building, with a fish-shaped figurehead. "Baratie" was labeled along the side of the boat, along with the word "restaurant" at the top, leaving no question that this was where they'd meant to go.

"What do you think?"

"What a huge fish!" Luffy yelled, gazing at the restaurant with glee.

"Wow! It's cool!" Nami and Usopp both shouted, matching Luffy's grin. Hazel stood beside her brother, delighted at the sight of the restaurant. A restaurant on a boat - who would've thought?

As they approached the Baratie, the crew's attention was caught by another approaching ship, this one with a familiar white and blue pattern.

"Woah! A marine ship!" Hazel's eyes narrowed; it'd be best if they could avoid a fight for now, but the chances of that happening were pretty slim. "Where'd it come from?" Luffy asked, not sounding the least bit worried.

"I hope they don't blast us," came Usopp's shaky reply, and they all caught sight of the ship's cannon, pointed right in their direction.

"Hey, _we're_ not pirates!" Johnny yelled, hiding behind the railing with Yosaku. _Nice, you guys..._weren't these guys supposed to be big, tough bounty hunters?

"Look!" Yosaku pointed towards the Marine ship. "Who's that guy?"

Standing on the deck of the ship was a man with bright, pink hair, wearing a gray pinstripe suit. It was hard to see his expression, but from what Hazel could tell, he seemed to be assessing them.

"I'm lieutenant Ironfist Fullbody," he called out to them after a moment, brandishing his fist. "Ironfist" was apparently meant literally, as he had bolts attached to his knuckles. That's...original, Hazel supposed. "Who's the captain? Speak your name!"

"Monkey D. Luffy!"

"I'm Usopp!" Hazel quickly shushed the sniper, who flinched at the sight of her disapproving glare.

"We just made our pirate flag yesterday!" Luffy continued.

"And I'm the one who drew it!" Usopp spoke up again, now ignoring Luffy's matching glare. Ok, so that was probably more info than the _Marine lieutenant_ needed, but Hazel wasn't gonna say anything about it now.

"Yesterday?"

"What amateurs!"

"Hey!" Hazel scolded the two bounty hunters, stopping their laughter in its tracks. "These 'amateurs' saved your life yesterday," she reminded them coolly.

"O-of course, Sister Hazel!" The men quickly rectified.

"Hm, you two scalawags look familiar," Fullbody said, eyes on the two men. "You visit the government agencies a lot. You're those two-bit bounty hunters, Yosaku and Johnny. Captured by pirates, eh?"

"Yosaku, this guy may have just insulted us."

"Two-bit? He can't call us that, it's a matter of honor. Let's make Mr. Marine Fancy Pants revise his view of us." The bounty hunters pulled out their swords, attacking the man before Hazel could stop them. Two seconds later, they both were lying at her feet, faces swollen where they'd met the literal iron fist. "A hair's breadth from death…"

"Are you guys weak or what?" Luffy asked, glaring down at them.

"N-no. he's really tough," Yosaku insisted, while Johnny just repeated that he was a "hair's breadth from death".

"You're not recovered yet!" Hazel scolded the two idiots.

"What are you doing?" Zoro asked them, sounding exasperated with his old comrades.

"Fullbody!~ Quit picking on those sissies, and let's go!" Came a feminine voice from the Marines' ship, arms reaching out from behind a door to take the lieutenant's sleeve.

"Yes, my dear. It's your lucky day, pirates!" Ironfist called out to them, brandishing his knuckles. "It's my day off. I've come to dine. But beware, when we meet again, you're dead."

"What's this, Johnny?" Nami asked suddenly, kneeling by the man's head. When the two had fallen, a stack of papers had spilled out of both their coats, and were now laying on the deck surrounding them. The orange-haired navigator had one in her hands, giving it a thorough examination, though Hazel couldn't see what was on it.

"Ugh, wanted posters," Johnny answered, spitting blood from his mouth. "Pirates and bounties, Sister Nami." Nami seemed to tense up, sparking concern as Hazel watched her carefully. "An ugly business, I get a bounty for every one I kill." Johnny glanced up, apparently noticing the same tension Hazel had. "Something wrong?"

"Ahh! This is bad!" Usopp interrupted. Hazel turned her head so quick she got whiplash, but it was quickly forgotten at the sight before her. "They're shooting a cannon at us!"

"WHAT?!"

**BOOM!"**

"AH! They fired on us!" Usopp continued to yell.

"Luffy!" Hazel called out, but the boy was already way ahead of her.

"I'll handle it!" He climbed on top of the railing, sucking in a deep breath as the cannonball sailed toward them.

"Luffy, what the-?!"

"Gum Gum...BALLOON!" At the last minute, and to almost everyone's shock, Luffy's body expanded, catching the cannonball before it could hit their ship. "Here's your cannonball!" He yelled, sending it flying away. Only, rather than the Marine ship, the projectile went flying towards the restaurant instead.

"You returned it to the wrong place, idiot!"

In shock, Luffy fell backwards off the railing, landing on the deck with tears in his eyes. Everyone, pirate and Marine alike, stared at the brand new, smoking hole in the roof of the Baratie.

"Shit…"

* * *

"We got him, chef! He's the scoundrel!"

"I'm really sorry!" Luffy pleaded, being hoisted into the room by the back of his shirt. Hazel was right behind him, worry and annoyance etched on her face at her brother's treatment. Ok, so he'd destroyed part of the restaurant, did that really justify manhandling him?

The chefs had arrived on the Going Merry less than five minutes after the hole had been created, immediately yelling for the culprit. Luffy, the honest boy that he was, willingly confessed to the destruction, and since Ironfist had already disappeared inside, there was really no one else to pin the blame on anyway. As they dragged Luffy away, Hazel ran after them, hoping to be an advocate in his favor. By the look on the owner's face, though, she figured that probably wasn't going to happen.

The man was short, stocky, with a hat about half as tall as Hazel. Blood dripped down the side of his face, likely from the impact of the cannonball, and from his bed he was glaring at them from over his (rather impressive) mustache. But what really caught attention from the two siblings, was the complete lack of a right leg.

"AH! I blew off your foot?!" Luffy screamed, horrified. Hazel turned away in terror, thoughts going at a mile a minute. There was no way they could make up for something like _that_! Would he demand their supplies? Their ship? Their _heads_?!

"Oh, it was already like that…" Luffy said, pulling her from her thoughts. Oh. Duh. The guy already had a peg-leg, of course it was an old injury. "But you're hurt all over!"

"That's right, punk! Now, how do you plan to make it up to me?!" The old chef demanded.

"Uhh…"

"We don't have any money, sir…" Hazel answered, rather pathetically. She looked around at the damage. That was going to be a damn expensive repair.

"No beli, huh? Then you'll work off your debt," The man declared, leaning back against his mattress. Well, that seemed reasonable enough.

"Ok, I'll do it," Luffy agreed easily. The old man smirked.

"You'll work without pay for one year! Then we'll call it even."

"A whole year?!" The siblings shouted, indignant at the man's terms.

"Sir, is there any way to shorten that?" Hazel asked, trying to sound polite and respectful. Luffy had no such qualms.

"Give me a break. I'll work for one week!" Hazel felt like facepalming; of course the old man wouldn't go for that.

"Don't insult me, boy. Your witless bombardment damaged my establishment and injured me. One measly week of work won't do. You'll serve me for one full year, eh?"

"I won't!" Luffy argued, defiant. "I've already waited 10 years to be a pirate! I won't wait another whole year!" The rubber-man crossed his arms, pouting. "That's my last offer. I'll permit you to let me work it off in a week!"

"Dammit, Luffy! That's not how this works!"

"You don't decide, Eggplant-head!" The old man yelled out, suddenly catching Luffy by the side of the head with his peg-leg. "Chef's Special-Peg-Leg-Kick!" The boy went flying across the room, slamming into a dresser which only added to the mess of damage. Hazel stared at the old man incredulously; wasn't he just saying he was injured? "What I'll permit is for me to decide!"

"You must be feeling better," Luffy snarked, completely unharmed.

"Shut up!"

"Sir, please! Isn't there anything we can do?"

"Okay, kids. Since your time is so precious, I'll offer you a quick way out of this." Hazel brightened. They were getting somewhere! Then he brought out a knife. "Give me a leg. Leave one with me." The girl's hope turned to horror; this guy was nuts!

"I don't want to," Luffy said simply. "That's crazy, mister. I'm not Buggy the Clown."

"Argh! What you want doesn't matter, boy!" The old man leapt into the air, positioning himself above where Luffy still lay on the floor. "Chef drop!" He slammed into the boy, only to look up in fear a second later. He met Hazel's gaze. **CRACK!** Their eyes widened. Then, the floor fell through.

"AHHH!"

Hazel leapt back, just far enough to avoid falling with the two men to the floor below. She could hear shouting underneath her, though there was too much of it to make out what was being said, and she turned around to rush down the stairs. She knew Luffy would be ok, but she hated to think what this would mean for the debt they now owed.

Just as she was coming down the stairs, she heard a loud **BANG!** She paused on the steps, head whipping so fast in the direction of the gunshot that her purple curls smacked her in the face; her neck was starting to get sore. Just what the hell was going on around here?!

She finished descending the stairs to the main floor of the restaurant, eyes immediately finding Luffy in the middle of the floor. He was surrounded by four other people, one of them being the Marine they'd encountered earlier and who started this whole mess. He was lying on the floor near Luffy, looking rather worse for wear, but Hazel couldn't find it in her to feel any sympathy for him. The old chef was also there, and she assumed the other two were some of his employees; a tall man with a beard and a piece of rope tied around his shaved head, and a young blonde man in a suit, smoking a cigarette. They were all staring at the door, the same direction she'd heard the gunshot, and as she peered through the doorway she could only make out a dark figure standing behind a fallen Marine.

"Customer, party of one," she heard Rope Head say.

"He'd better not try to bust up my place," The old geezer responded; Hazel actually did feel a bit bad for him now. He was having a rough day.

"A pirate!" Luffy called out. The man ignored all of them, sauntering into the restaurant to fold into a seat at an empty table. He placed one foot on top of the tablecloth, commanding all the attention in the room.

"Bring me food," He said after a moment, breaking the tense silence. "Anything. This is a restaurant, ain't it?"

Rope Head went up to his table, a large smile on his face as he prepared to take his order. "Welcome, Squidface!" Hazel's eyes widened. Was he insulting him, or just stupid? Both?

"I'm only going to say this once more, so listen," The pirate said again, apparently unbothered. "I'm a customer. Bring me food!" Everyone waited with baited breath as the cook responded.

"Pardon me, mon-sewer," He said, with a horrendous fake accent. "But can you pay?"

"You take lead?" The pirate countered, pointing his gun straight at the cook's forehead. The cook wasn't taking that lightly, however.

"You don't got money?" Hazel jumped as the cook suddenly slammed his fist on the other man's head, breaking the chair beneath him to pieces. The restaurant patrons cheered, but the head chef seemed more annoyed about the broken furniture than anything else. "If you can't pay, you ain't a customer…" The man groaned pathetically from his spot on the floor, beginning to pick himself up.

"Yay, Patty! Finish that scum!" The other chefs cheered, while a strange gurgling sound came from the fallen pirate. "Hey, chef, his stomach's growling!"

"Idiot," The pirate shot back, light smile on his face. "That was a fart." Ew. "Just gimme a little food, eh?"

"You're no customer, so get lost!" Rope Head - er, Patty - fired back at him, screaming in his face as he continued to kick at the fallen man. "Customers are a restaurant's life's blood! I wouldn't give yesterday's rice to a penniless sea wolf like you!" The pirate finally seemed to pass out, and Hazel barely caught the Marine lieutenant walking out the door before Patty stood up straight. He did a strange little curtsy with his apron, smiling at the customers who'd been watching the whole thing. "Dear customers! Please! Enjoy your meals!" Then he picked up the pirate, walked over to a side door, and promptly discarded him on the outer deck.

Everyone seemed to disperse a bit then, the cooks going back to their kitchen and the customers back to their plates. Hazel heard the old chef snap at Luffy to clean up the broken furniture, before they too disappeared somewhere into the kitchen. She thought about going after them, maybe to argue with the old man about Luffy's sentence some more, but then thought better of it. Arguing the point further when he'd just had more of his restaurant destroyed would likely result in something worse for Luffy; as far as shortening his sentence, they'd figure something out later. As she made her way onto the main floor, movement in the corner of her eye caught her attention. The blonde man from earlier was leaving the kitchen, heading towards the door Patty had thrown the pirate out of earlier, and he was carrying a bowl of steaming food.

_Interesting…_

Before she could move further, Luffy ran right past her, practically knocking her over as he followed the cook out the door. Hazel let out a laugh as she steadied herself. "Destroying his restaurant, and stealing his employees on the same day, Luff? You're crazy…"

* * *

"So what you're saying is, we're stuck here for a while?"

Hazel picked at the food on her plate before answering, "As of right now? Yes. But give Luffy a few more days to wreak havoc and I'm sure they'll be begging us to take him back, debt or no debt."

"You seem pretty optimistic about that," Usopp said, skeptical. Hazel just shot him a sardonic smile.

"You think that guy is capable of doing chores? Please," she laughed. Usopp considered her words for a moment before agreeing. "Just be a little patient, and hope that he doesn't catch us eating while he's working."

"Why would that matter?"

"Hey!" Speak of the devil. Luffy stormed over to their table, pout plain on his face as he eyed their plates of food.

"Hi, Chore Boy!" Nami sang out, waving at him.

"So...you gotta work for a year," Usopp teased him, ignoring Hazel's eye-rolling.

"Can we change the ship's flag?" Zoro asked, snarky smirk on his face at the captain's glare.

"No, we're not changing the flag," Hazel scolded him, but with a smile on her face that showed she enjoyed the teasing Luffy was getting. "The name might have to go, however." She let out a laugh at Luffy's appalled glare.

"Argh! You guys! You're eating without me?!" The boy yelled, attention back on their empty plates. "I'm slaving away and you're eating out?! That's mean!"

"There's a lot I could say to that, Luffy, but I'm gonna let that one go," Hazel said quietly, thinking of all the times she'd basically said the same thing to him as a child. So many nights that she'd slaved away on dinner, just to find out he'd eaten at the bar. Not that it'd mattered in the end; the boy had always had an appetite.

"Quiet down, Luffy," a voice called from another table, and Hazel turned to see the blonde guy from earlier. "Are they your crew?"

"Eat this!" Luffy muttered, picking his nose and wiping it on Zoro's cup. Hazel bit her lip, fighting back the urge to both laugh and scold him. Nami and Usopp practically doubled over, barely even trying to conceal their laughter.

"Why shouldn't we enjoy a nice meal?" Zoro asked, seemingly unaware of what had happened to his drink. "The food's not bad here." He went to take a drink, and Hazel had to turn away, covering her mouth with her palm. "But I do feel bad for you…" Suddenly, the swordsman stood up, forcing the cup to Luffy's mouth and pouring it down his throat. "You drink it!"

At that, the rest of the crew lost control of their laughter. The restaurant rang out with loud bellows of laughter; even Hazel was in tears, wiping her eyes and clutching her sides as Luffy screamed and fell to the floor. "What did you do that for?"

"What did _you_ do that for?!" Zoro countered, watching his captain writhe on the floor. Hazel tried to calm down and catch her breath, but every time she glanced at her brother she lost it once again. It'd been a while since she'd laughed quite this hard; she was sure she'd be sore from it later.

"Oh sea, how grateful I am for this day of days!~" The blonde cook suddenly appeared behind Luffy, practically floating off the ground as he continued shouting. "Oh love!~ Smile upon me for I cannot survive this pain!~" The sudden posturing shocked Hazel out of her laughter, shock and confusion running through her as the man approached Nami. "I would stoop to becoming a pirate, or even a devil, if only I could be with you!~"

What the fuck?

"Hey, Nami? Lemme know if you need me to beat this guy up for you, ok?" Hazel whispered in the younger woman's ear. Nami just shrugged, appearing wholly unimpressed by the whole thing.

"And you, my flower!~ Your beauty is as striking as the first rays of sunset over a storm-tossed sea! I would brave the waves alone if I could only gaze upon your magnificence forever!~ Such tragedy! The obstacles between us are great!~" Hazel blinked in surprise as the man turned his attention to her, taking her hand in his and gazing up at her from one knee. What was happening here?

"Obstacles, Sanji?"

"Damn geezer!" Sanji whipped around to glare at his boss, startled out of his reverie. Hazel just continued to blink, confused at the interaction she'd just had and unsure how to process it. Nami didn't seem to be bothered by the young man's apparent affections, but when she glanced at the boys, Hazel could see that they at least seemed annoyed. _Well, if they wanna switch places, they can go right ahead..._

"Follow your heart. Go be a pirate," the old man said suddenly, and Hazel turned her attention back to the two sea cooks. "I don't need you here anymore."

"What?! You damn geezer, I'm the Sous Chef here. What do you mean I'm not needed?"

"You fight with the customers. You waste hours flaring your nostrils for the women. And you're a lousy cook. You're nothing but dead weight, Sanji. The other cooks don't like you much, either." Ouch. This was beginning to feel a bit awkward; but like a lion descending on its prey, it was impossible to look away from. "So go be a pirate and get out of my restaurant."

"Don't step over the line, old man!" Sanji snapped, storming over to grab the chef by the collar. "You can insult me, but don't you dare insult my cooking! I'm staying right here! You have no say in the matter!"

"Don't lay your hands on me, you overgrown eggplant!" The owner yelled, flipping the younger man into their table. Both table and Sanji went flying, the Straw Hats having just managed to save their plates before they were destroyed.

"You can't kick me out!" Sanji yelled, standing up from the wreckage. "I'll cook here forever! Until you die!"

"I won't die," Owner said, walking away from the man. "I'll live another hundred years."

"Gotta have the last word, eh?"

"Great!" Luffy said once the old man had left. "You got permission! Come be my cook!"

"Never!"

"Luffy…" Hazel said, yanking the boy back by his shirt. "Read the room."

Sanji stood up, brushing himself off, then quickly picked up the table he'd plowed into and righted it in front of Nami and Hazel. "Forgive the commotion," he said, placing a large glass bowl of what looked like fruit in front of both of them, along with glasses that he quickly began filling with whine. Where he'd gotten all that, Hazel couldn't begin to guess. "A fruit _macédoine, _with my compliments. And Grand Marnier as a digestive, my angels."

"Ooh, thank you!" Nami cooed, thoroughly enjoying the special treatment. Hazel, however, felt uncomfortable.

"Umm, thank you, but it's really not necessary," She said, but was spoken over by Nami, who seemed determined not to give up his attention.

"Hey! Don't we get any?" Usopp whined, pointing to him and Zoro. "That's discrimination! I'll sue!"

"I gave you tea, didn't I? You should be grateful, you mangy octopus!" Sanji immediately dropped the airy tone as he turned to the sniper, scowl on his face as he puffed smoke in his direction.

"You wanna fight? I'm not gonna take that from you! Get him, Zoro!"

"Get him yourself," The swordsman responded, ignoring the two arguing behind him as he eyed the wine in Hazel's glass. She smiled, pushing it towards him silently, and he happily drank it up.

"Here, Usopp, I'm not all that hungry. You can have mine," Hazel offered, nudging the bowl of fruit in the boy's direction. Usopp continued to dog the chef, more annoyed over the principal of it all than anything else, and so she gave the food to Luffy instead.

"You haven't even cleared my plate!" Sanji glanced at the almost clear dish.

"There's mushrooms on it, eat them!"

"I don't like mushrooms!" Usopp insisted, pressing his long nose against the other man's. "I ate a poison mushroom once when I was a kid!" That actually was one of the more believable things Hazel had heard from the boy.

"Well _those_ aren't poisonous, so eat every bite, Long-Nose!"

"Oh, please don't fight over me!" Nami interrupted before it could escalate further. Hazel raised a brow in her direction; who was fighting over her?

"As you wish!~"

"Who's fighting over you?!" Well, at least it worked.

"Um, by the way…" Nami continued, looking demure and batting her lashes at the poor guy. "This gourmet fare is a tad pricey."

"For you, it's free!~" Sanji declared, over the moon as the girl wrapped her arms around him in thanks. He turned to the boys once again, dropping the lovey eyes as soon as he did. "Pay up, bums."

"WHAT?!"

"Ah! Actually, uh, Sir, all this food was for me," Hazel piped up, hoping she sounded as shy and feminine as Nami had. She felt a bit foolish, especially as the cook turned his gaze onto her.

"Ah, my love is so generous to her loutish companions!~ Of course, your meal is free as well, my dear!~" And he floated away, ignoring the glares he was receiving from Usopp and Zoro.

"Did you bewitch him?" The grass-haired man asked, annoyed at the interaction.

"You three better watch out, too!~" Nami teased, winking in his direction. Hazel just shook her head, glad that was over. She wasn't good at this kind of stuff. They watched as the cook enthusiastically greeted another group of ladies, showing that his attitude wasn't just reserved for them.

"What a ladies man…" Usopp muttered, receiving nods from the rest of the crew.

"Enough goofing off, Chore Boy!" Sanji suddenly yelled, smashing his foot onto Luffy's head, splashing tea all over the boy's face. He gripped him by the collar, lifting him out of his chair as they stormed away from the group. "Offer hot towels to our customers."

"Okay…" Came Luffy's pitiful response, as he was dragged away. Poor kid…

* * *

Two days later, the Straw Hats (minus Luffy) were relaxing on the Going Merry, passing the time while they waited for their captain's sentence to end, when out of the mist appeared a grand, battered vessel. The ship was easily twice the size of the Baratie, and could swallow the Merry whole if it had the means to do so.

The Krieg Pirates had arrived.

Hazel hadn't known it at the time, but she'd later learned from Luffy the events that had transpired with Sanji and the starving man, Gin. Whether it was retaliation for Patty's ill-treatment of his crewmate, or a response to Sanji's kindness in feeding him, this encounter would likely only lead to trouble. Hazel watched as the ship made a beeline for the restaurant, eyes narrowed and hands gripped around the railing.

"Woah! This is bad!" Usopp shouted, fear clear in his voice. "Let's get outta here!"

"Brother, set sail! We don't wanna die!" The bounty hunter duo voted from beneath their blankets on deck.

"We can't just leave Luffy," Hazel told them, cutting any talk of fleeing. The pirate ship docked on the other side of the restaurant, shielding their view of the crew. After a moment, shouts could be heard inside, but Hazel refrained from jumping in. She had no way of knowing how many people they'd be going up against. Glancing up, her eyes met Zoro's, and an unspoken agreement passed between them: for now, it was best to wait.

Restaurant-goers began pouring out of the Baratie, loading up on a nearby boat used for transportation to the restaurant. It was now being turned into a refugee ship, as the customers ran from what was clearly brewing to be a large-scale fight. The restaurant was mostly silent, save for a few shouts here and there, and Hazel figured they must be discussing something.

**BOOM!** An explosion suddenly rocketed through the front doorway. Hazel's vision was blocked by the bulk of the Baratie, but despite the loud explosion, she doubted it'd taken care of whoever it was meant to. Things were never that easy. The shouts soon resumed, followed by a barrage of gunfire.

Hazel made to leap onto the deck, but she was stopped by a tan hand on her wrist. Sharp gray eyes shot up, questioning Zoro without words about why he was stopping her. He tilted his head back towards Nami, standing tense against the wall of the galley as she listened to events unfold. Understanding clicked in Hazel's mind, and although she was annoyed at staying behind, it made sense. Yosaku had _barely_ recovered from scurvy, and both bounty hunters were still recovering from their attempted attack on Ironfist Fullbody the other day. If any of the Krieg Pirates tried to go for the Merry, they were basically sitting ducks.

"You get to have all the fun," she huffed at him, drawing a smirk from the swordsman before he and Usopp ran for the restaurant. They snuck in through the back, disappearing into the ship, and Hazel tried to focus her attention on the people she was meant to babysit.

The shouts from inside were still distracting, though she thankfully heard no more gunfire. She kept her eyes trained mostly on the large ship looming beyond the Baratie, ready for the first sign of danger. The ship was heavily damaged, though by what she didn't know; but there was no way of knowing the state of those who sailed her.

Then things grew silent, still, and an eerie feeling crept up Hazel's neck. It was as though the entire sea was waiting for something to happen...but what?

She turned away for now; stressing herself over what was about to happen wouldn't do anyone any good. She could see Nami across the deck, appearing to be in deep concentration as she stared at something in her hand. Not one to pry into other people's business (much), Hazel decided to venture into the kitchen for a snack. Some water and some food should help settle her anxiety. As she was searching the fridge for something simple, she heard what sounded like a splash just outside. Raising a brow, Hazel made her way back onto the deck, carefully climbing the stairs to where she'd last seen the others.

"I'm a thief that only targets pirates. I'll take this ship." Nami was standing at the rail, speaking to the ocean. Her words sent a spark of dread through Hazel's gut, and she paused for a second on the stairs before running up the rest of them, nearly tripping in her haste. "I never said that I became a member. I just joined forces with them. That's all." _DammitDammitDammitDammit_\- "I only spent a short time with Luffy and the others, but I had lots of fun. Tell them that if we're linked by fate, we'll meet again." The girl turned around, waving to who could only have been Johnny and Yosaku.

Gray eyes met brown, a certain deadness behind the navigator's eyes that Hazel had never seen before. The older woman shifted her stance, blocking the stairs, and the way to the whipstaff. Nami's eyes narrowed, a flash of _something_ sparking behind the dead-eyed stare, then she reached for her leg, extending her bo staff. Hazel's teeth clenched, forcing the nausea of betrayal away for the time being. "You wanna run that one by me again?" She spat, causing the younger girl to flinch slightly.

"I don't like repeating myself, but I'm taking your ship; by force if necessary!"

"Oh, it will be necessary," Hazel countered, ducking a swipe from the orange-haired girl. "Why are you doing this? I thought we were friends!"

"We were never friends, we were _business partners_! I said from the beginning, 'I'd never be a pirate'!" Nami struck out again, this time for Hazel's feet in an effort to knock her off balance. The record-keeper leapt over the weapon, kicking off from the ground to rush at the navigator. As her leg struck out, Nami blocked the attack with her staff, gritting her teeth as she held off the stronger woman. With an impressive show of force, she pushed the older woman back, immediately swinging her staff in an effort to knock her over. Hazel was quick, steadying herself and blocking every blow Nami threw at her; she'd have hellish bruises on her arms later, but it was the best she could do short of all out attacking her.

"I don't want to fight you, Nami," Hazel told her in an even voice. "Whatever it is that's bothering you, we can help!" At that, Nami's eyes narrowed, a strange mixture of fury and fear rising behind them as she swung back, baring her teeth.

"There's nothing I need your help with! Now back! Off!" And she swung, powered on by her rage. Hazel reached up to block the blow, but was surprised by the strength behind it, and her attempt was thwarted.

**SMACK!**

Hazel's vision blurred as the bo staff met her temple. She felt herself double over, clutching her head as she fought the urge to throw up. The ringing in her ears made it difficult to tell what was happening around her. She looked up, squinting in an effort to lessen the blur, and could vaguely make out the tentative orange figure before her head erupted in pain once again. This time there was no fighting it, and as she succumbed to the darkness, she felt the sensation of flying; or was it falling?

"SISTER HAZEL!"


	7. Chapter 7

**I'm so sorry this took me so long! It's been a bit of a rough summer, unfortunately, but I'm hoping things will start evening out! I've already started on chapter 8, and hope to have that out soon, so thanks for waiting!**

* * *

Ocean waves rocked against the Baratie, the screams of its occupants drowned out by the crack of their enemies' ship breaking in half. Luffy, Usopp, and Zoro stood in shock as the screams of the Krieg Pirates carried through the sea restaurant, all thoughts of battle halted in the wake of this development.

"What was that?!" Luffy shouted, eyes wide as the restaurant continued to rock and shake. Don Krieg turned his head, shouting for his men.

"What happened?!"

"Don Krieg! The ship!" Came a voice from his crew. "It's listing!"

"Listing?! My flagship galleon?! But...how could that be?!"

Fear struck Zoro, and his fist hit the table. "Hazel, Nami, Johnny, and Yosaku are on our ship!" He shouted, his captain already leaping for the door. He made to follow him, Usopp hot on his heels.

"It may be too late!" The sniper yelled, not bothering to hide the terror in his voice. Just what the hell was happening?!

Ignoring the shouts of the chefs to weigh anchor, the Straw Hats ran outside, eyes scanning the ocean for the Going Merry; but no matter where they looked, she was nowhere to be seen. The swordsman began to fear the worst when he heard voices calling for him.

"BROTHER!"

"Yosaku! Johnny! You ok?! Where's-" His voice cut off as he caught sight of the figure in Johnny's arms, unconscious and bleeding and laying across his shoulder.

"HAZEL!" Luffy's long arms stretched out for his sister, wrapping around her as gently as he could manage to pull her on deck. He lay the woman flat while Zoro and Usopp helped pull the bounty hunters up, then began poking and prodding and even lightly slapping her cheeks - anything to get her to wake up.

"I saw her go under; I tried to grab her as fast as I could!" Johnny cried, teeth clenched as he looked at the pale woman. Zoro clenched his fist, waiting with baited breath for a sign - any sign - that she was still alive. After a moment that seemed to drag on forever, he was able to pick up the soft rise and fall of her chest. She was breathing. Unconscious, but breathing. Worries quelled for now, the swordsman turned back to his old partners.

"Where's our ship?! Where's Nami?!"

"Sorry, Brother Zoro! They're-! They're gone!" Johnny cried again, leaving Zoro more baffled than before. From the corner of his eye he saw Usopp join the battle to wake Hazel up. "Sister Nami...she sailed off with all the treasure!"

"WHAT?!" All three pirates yelled.

"She took the ship?!" Usopp shouted, anger clouding his tone.

A coughing sound behind them drew their attention, and five sets of eyes lit up as Hazel groaned and sat up, pressing a palm to her bleeding temple. "When I see that *cough* _fucking thief _again, I'm gonna...I'm gonna-!" She broke off into coughing fits, exasperated further when her brother threw his arms around her, compressing her ribs. "Hi, Luffy…" She groaned, patting his back.

"_Shishishi_ you're ok!" He grinned, finally giving her space to breathe.

"Relatively, anyway…" Hazel muttered, squinting in an effort to clear her vision. "Is the ship swaying, or was I really hit that hard?" Zoro let out a deep breath, then turned back to the bounty hunting pair to hear their story.

"What the hell happened, you three?"

"Sorry, Brother!" Johnny and Yosaku cried, recanting the tale of how Nami tricked them and stole their treasure. "And that's how she got away!"

"Damn that wench!" Zoro yelled, punching the wall of the sea restaurant. "We should've known her good behavior was just an act!"

"She abandoned us in our time of need!" Usopp yelled with righteous fury.

"She gave me a goddamned concussion," Hazel deadpanned.

"Hey! I can still see the ship!" Luffy pointed out, gazing off into the distance. "It's the Going Merry!" Sure enough, if she squinted really hard Hazel could just make out their flag in the distance. "Yosaku! Johnny! Where's your ship?!" Luffy turned suddenly, springing upon the duo.

"It's anchored nearby!"

"Hazel! Zoro! Usopp!"

"Forget her, why go chasing after that little thief?" Zoro argued, waving his captain off.

"But what about the ship?! Kaya's ship?!" Usopp protested, but was met with only a blank stare from Zoro.

"No! Nami's going to be our navigator, and nobody else!" Luffy declared, putting a stop to his crew's bickering. Swordsman and sniper stared at their captain for a moment, then turned as their record-keeper scoffed.

"You guys do what you want, I'm going," Hazel said, standing up. She swayed only a little, bracing herself against the side of the restaurant until the world stopped spinning. "She thinks she can just..._leave_ like that?! Well she's got another thing coming!" It was the angriest they'd ever seen her - besides Luffy. They were so used to her more level-headed approach when compared to the captain's way of doing things, that to see her seething with rage was almost unnerving. The violet-haired woman stared them down through the blood dripping in her eye, daring them to stop her, looking ready to burn the whole world down.

"You're pissed," Zoro commented, neither approving or disapproving of her state of mind. She turned steel gray eyes to him, narrowing them and turning his blood to ice.

"_Of course I'm pissed! _She acts like our friend, then just turns around and steals from us?! Acts like none of the things we've been through together have meant _anything_?! _No! _I'm not gonna stand for that! I wanna know _why_, and I wanna hear it _straight from her_, so you can all stay here for all I care, but I'm. Going. After. Her!" And with that she turned on her heel, narrowly avoiding falling over, and stomped in the direction of Johnny and Yosaku's boat.

Zoro watched her go, something crawling through his gut he couldn't waste time identifying, then turned back to his captain, annoyance building in him. "Ugh, okay, okay! We'll go! C'mon, Usopp!" The sniper cheered and followed after him, following the older woman to the bounty hunters' boat, then stopped when he realized something.

"Luffy, aren't you coming?" Usopp asked when the rubber-man made no move to follow them. The boy pointed with his thumb at the restaurant behind him.

"I can't, Baratie is still in trouble!" Hazel had to smile at that; what a time for him to learn responsibility.

"Well, be careful," Zoro warned. "Things could get dicey."

"I know-"

"It's him!" The pirates turned towards the shout, coming from the enemy ship. "Don Krieg! It's him! The devil who sank our ships! He followed us all the way here! He's come to kill us!"

_One man sank their ships? _Hazel peered around Yosaku's head, hoping for a better look at this apparent "devil". All she could see was a coffin shaped boat, a single man perched on an almost throne-like seat behind flickering green candles. Most of his head was obscured by a large, impressively fancy, hat. At his back rested what appeared to be a gilded cross, matching the image created by his mast and sail. In all, Hazel had to admire the dedication to his look, but she definitely got more "vampire" than "devil".

"Is it true?" She heard Zoro gasp, and she glanced at him in surprise. "Is that Hawkeye?!"

"Hawkeye…?" Hazel muttered, eyes trailing back to the vampire-man. This was who Zoro had been chasing?

"You son of a bitch! Why do you keep picking on us?!" A man yelled from the wreckage of Krieg's ship. Hawkeye said nothing for a moment, and the world seemed still before his answer.

"For fun."

"FOR FUN?!" The man screamed, drawing his pistols and shooting them straight at the vampire-man. Before Hazel could blink, Hawkeye had deflected them, and she could now see that what she'd thought was a cross was actually a sword. A really big, black, fancy-ass sword.

"Are all swordsmen this fucking extra?!" She snapped.

"What?! You missed?!" The Krieg Pirates shouted, shocked that the guy wasn't dead.

"No. Shooting at him is useless." Wait a minute…"He deflected the bullets with his sword."

"Huh?! Who are you?!"

"Zoro! What are you doing over there?!" Hazel shouted, wondering when he'd left. She couldn't shake the bad feeling crawling through her gut. Something big was about to happen, she could feel it, and she would feel a lot better about whatever it was if Zoro would just _get back to the ship!_

"I've never seen such subtle swordwork," the grass-haired man called out to his rival in a steady voice.

"Without subtlety, a sword is like an iron bar," the man called back, resheathing his large weapon.

"You split this galleon with that sword?"

"Of course."

"I see," Hazel saw the feral grin spread over Zoro's face, and the anxiety spread through her body. "Then you are the greatest." Oh no. "I went to sea to find you!"

"Why?"

Zoro finished tying his bandana around his head, grin growing wider in anticipation. "To be the greatest. Looking for some fun?" He challenged, drawing his sword in Hawkeye's direction. "Then fight me."

"The three-sword style! That's Zoro! Roronoa Zoro!"

"What?!"

Zoro ignored the shouts around him, continuing to stare down his opponent. Hazel clenched her teeth so hard she felt dizzy (ok, so it was at least partially the concussion), hating what was obviously about to happen, but knowing she'd be powerless to stop it. All she could do was sit and wait, fingers crossed that their swordsman would come out on top.

"There's no time for this! The ship's almost out of sight!" Usopp shouted, urging Zoro to come back so they could leave. Hazel and Luffy remained silent, knowing no amount of shouting would pull Zoro from his goal now. The challenge was set; it'd damage his pride to back down now. _"I followed a pirate I was after out to sea…"_

"Pathetic. Weakling." Hawkeye drawled, stepping out of his coffin boat to meet the boy's challenge. "If you're a competent swordsman, you don't need to cross swords to know that I far surpass your puny skills. Does the courage to point your blade at me come from confidence, or from ignorance?"

"It comes from ambition." Chills shot up Hazel's spine as Zoro placed his white katana between his teeth. "And from a promise to a friend." Silence descended on the Baratie, all onlookers watching with bated breath to see how this showdown would play out. "We meet at last. Actually, sooner than I thought."

"How futile." Hawkeye appeared bored, barely acknowledging Zoro's challenge, as though he were less than a speck of dirt on his impressively black boot.

"Hawkeye Mihawk, The Greatest Swordsman in the World, and Pirate Hunter Zoro!" Hazel heard Patty muse from the other side of the Baratie.

"No one alive can beat our brother!" The bounty hunter duo declared, confident. Hazel bit her lip, hoping rather optimistically that they were right.

"What's that for?" Zoro asked when instead of the large sword from before, Hawkeye instead drew a knife from the cross hanging from his neck. It was a tiny thing, insultingly tiny, and Hazel found herself offended on her swordsman's behalf.

"I'm not the kind of fool who hunts rabbits with a cannon. You may have a reputation, but you're still just a bunny." Ouch. An image of Zoro in a bunny costume flit unbidden into Hazel's mind; she didn't think he'd appreciate that one very much right now, though. _Damn, she hit me a lot harder than I thought…_"The Red Line and the Grand Line divide the seas into four quarters. Of the four, the East Blue is the tamest. Sorry," Mihawk didn't sound very sorry. "This is the smallest knife I've got."

"Better take it easy with the bravado!" Zoro snarled through his sword, bracing to attack. "You'll feel stupid when I kill you!"

"Frog in the well...time you learned how big the world is." Mihawk barely moved, holding his tiny knife in front of him as Zoro ran at him with all his might.

"Oni...Giri!" Zoro attacked. Hazel's breath hitched. The entire world stilled in that split second.

So it was a surprise to everyone when Mihawk remained unmoved.

"Zoro?!" Luffy gasped.

"Wha-? He stopped Brother Zoro's Oni Giri Demon Cut?!"

"But that move never fails!"

Hazel's hands clenched the wood of the boat so hard she swore she could feel splinters. Zoro roared again, attacking with vigorous slashes left and right, only to be blocked at every turn. Without breaking a sweat, Mihawk threw the younger man onto his back, having barely moved from his starting position.

"Brother Zoro! Don't let him beat you!"

"Such heavy handed swordplay…" Mihawk commented, continuing to fend off every attack with the tiny thing he called a knife.

"I came to win!" Zoro ground out, not letting up. "I must defeat this man!"

"What drives you?" Mihawk asked, calm as ever, as though he weren't defending himself from a barrage of attacks from an overeager kid. "Why do you fight so hard when you cannot win? You're a weakling…"

"Our brother's not a weakling, Buzzard Eye!" Yosaku yelled, leaping off the ship to run Mihawk down himself.

"I'll teach you a lesson! That man is-"

"Stop! Stay out of it, Yosaku and Johnny!" Luffy yelled, pulling both men back by their coats and slamming their heads to the ground. "Control yourselves!" Hazel had run after them herself, the dizziness subsiding slightly, and when she approached her brother she could see he was barely holding himself back as well. She placed a hand on his shoulder, clenching it tight; an anchor for both siblings as they watched their friend and crewmate fight a losing battle.

Zoro positioned himself for an attack Hazel had only seen once before, placing two swords behind his head. "Tora…" A sharp inhale. "Gari!"

Mihawk's knife pierced his chest.

It took Hazel a moment to realize she was screaming with the rest of them, that it wasn't just the saltwater from earlier that was making her throat ache. As she watched blood pour from the wound her hand ached, and she vaguely noted how hard she'd been clenching Luffy's shoulder. Regaining control of herself, she loosened her grip, but kept her eyes firmly fixed on the unmoving swordsmen.

"Why aren't you withdrawing?"

"I...can't...If I retreat even one step...my vow, my ambition...everything I care about...will be shattered…and I'll never be able to come back to where I am now…" Zoro huffed.

"Yes, that's what defeat is about." Mihawk spat back at him.

"Heh...then all the more reason I can't withdraw…"

"Even if it means death?" Zoro grinned.

"I prefer death to defeat." Mihawk removed the knife, stepping back from his opponent.

"Boy, speak your name." Zoro widened his stance, positioning his blades in a perfect spiral pattern. Hazel didn't think her body could get any more wound up.

"Roronoa Zoro."

"I'll remember it." Mihawk reached for his sword. The real one. "I haven't seen anyone like you in a while, strong one. Thus, as a swordsman's courtesy, I'll sink you using the world's strongest black sword."

"I appreciate it." Cries erupted from the other onlookers, but Hazel couldn't hear them beyond the roar of blood pounding in her ears.

"Die!" Mihawk rushed forward, blade drawn back.

"Brother, please give up!"

"Three-Sword Style Secret Technique!" Zoro began spinning his blades around his outstretched fingers. "Three Thousand Worlds!"

For a moment, Hazel couldn't tell what happened. Both swordsmen stood on opposite sides from where they'd started, blades outstretched and facing away from each other. Then Zoro's blades broke, and blood spurted from his chest. A burning sensation prickled behind her eyes, but she kept watching; she owed him at least that much. Zoro sheathed his remaining sword, stood, and turned around with his arms held out, open to his opponent.

"What are you…" Mihawk asked, only to receive a grin in return.

"Scars on the back are a swordsman's shame…"

"Magnificent," Mihawk smiled, then swung his blade back once more. A second later, Zoro's chest was ripped open, blood spraying onto the deck of the Krieg Pirates' ship. Luffy's screams filled her ears, but she was numb to it all as she watched the man fall. Before he'd even reached the sea, Hazel was fighting back Johnny and Yosaku, leaping into the ocean after him. As she hit the water, her vision darkened, an ache pounding behind her eyes; but she paid no heed, focused solely on the spot she'd last seen his body.

Hazel had always been a great swimmer; it was a helpful skill to have when your brother was a devil fruit user, and it was this skill that she relied on to navigate her way through the deep blue sea. She kept her eyes open, squinting against the salt, and at the first flash of bright grass green, she sped off, looping her arms under the swordsman's bloody torso as she strained to heave him up. The man was an incredibly heavy dead weight, but the water helped to make him easier to carry, and when they broke the surface she was surprised to see that the others had moved the boat closer, and were now reaching for them both.

"Hey, come on now, wake up!" Hazel yelled, frantic as she climbed onto the boat. She reached over to slap the man's face until he woke up. After a second, he coughed, spitting blood onto Hazel's hand, but at least showing he was still alive. Relief flooded through her at the sight of him breathing, and as his eyes fluttered open it was all she could do not to hug him. Or slap him again for scaring her.

"Hurry! Put some salve on his wounds!" Usopp yelled, hurrying over with a jar of medicine and some bandages. She tried to help, but quickly found her shaking hands slapped away. "We've got this, Hazel! What were you thinking, jumping in?! Look, your head's bleeding again! Put some of this on yourself!"

"My name is Dracule Mihawk!" Hazel's face turned away from Usopp's mother henning to look at the man who'd decimated her crewmate. "It's too soon for you to die. Discover yourself. See the world. And grow strong! No matter how many years it takes, I will hold this seat of the strongest and wait for you. Strive with your whole heart and mind to best this blade, fierce one! Strive to surpass me! Roronoa Zoro!"

"Brother, please say something!" Zoro's eyes had fallen shut once again, and Hazel almost wondered if she'd imagined them before. She stared out where Mihawk stood next to her brother, worry filling her again, but the man made no move to attack.

"You, what is _your_ goal?"

"To be King of the Pirates!" Hazel could just make out the grin that crossed Mihawk's face.

"You tread a perilous path. Even more perilous than trying to surpass me."

"How would I know when I haven't done it yet?!" Despite her fatigue and fear, Hazel couldn't help but smile, especially as her baby brother stuck his tongue out at the man.

"He's alive!" The siblings turned back to their fallen crewmate. "Just unconscious!"

"Brother! Say something!" Hazel reached out, squeezing his forearm in an effort to reach him. She reeled back in surprise when all of a sudden the arm raised into the air, Zoro's remaining sword pointed to the sky.

"L...Luffy...can you hear me?" He forced out, voice thick.

"I hear you!"

"Did I worry you? You need no less than the World's Greatest Swordsman, right?" He coughed, blood spilling onto his lips.

"Brother! Save your breath!"

"Never again!" Zoro shouted, cutting the men off. "I will never lose again!" Tears spilled down the swordsman's face, pooling beneath his hair and mixing with the blood that had already stained the wood. "Until the day I defeat him and become a master swordsman, I'll never...be defeated! Got any problems with that...Pirate King?!"

A grin broke out over the captain's face as he began to laugh. "Nope!" Luffy answered.

As Mihawk turned to leave, another voice broke out of the crowd, this one belonging to a large man covered in armor. "Hey, Hawkeye! Didn't you come here for my head? For the head of Don Krieg, King of the Eastern Blue?"

King? She'd never heard of him…

"I was going to, but I had enough fun. So I'm going home to get some rest."

"You may have had enough, but I'm tired of getting beaten." The man's crew pleaded with him to stop, but he ignored them, opening his armor to reveal a barrage of weapons. "Die before you leave!" The weapons began to fire, straight at Mihawk, but the World's Greatest Swordsman simply deflected them back, creating a wave large enough to tip the wreckage of the pirate ship. When it cleared, he was gone.

"Usopp! Set sail! I'll leave Nami to you!" Luffy called out, holding onto the railing of the Baratie for dear life.

"Aye aye!" The sniper called, grabbing Luffy's straw hat from the air. "Zoro, Hazel, and I will bring Nami back for sure! You get that cook to join us! When all six of us are reunited, let's go to the Grand Line!" He shouted, tossing the hat back to his captain. Luffy stretched out his arm, catching it before it got caught in the wind, and pulled it back to him with a snap.

"Yeah! Let's do that!"

They were no longer within shouting distance, and Luffy had a battle to fight anyway, but Hazel still stood against the stern to shout some last minute words of encouragement: "Luffy! Don't die, ok!" She received only a wave in return, but it was enough, and so she turned back to the others. Zoro was resting once again on the floor, but the rest of them looked to the horizon, eyes fixed on the steadily retreating ship with the orange-haired navigator on board.

_We're coming, Nami…_

* * *

"You should get some rest."

Hazel raised half-lidded eyes to Usopp's face, surprised at the amount of concern there. The woman shrugged, prompting the boy to sit next to her as her gaze fixed once again on the Going Merry, practically a speck on the horizon at this point. They'd been at this for what felt like hours, though she had no way of actually knowing the time, and she was exhausted; but there was too much on her mind for her to go to sleep, too much to think about. "I'll be ok, Usopp. How's he doing?" She gestured towards the moss-headed idiot, still sleeping on the deck of their little boat.

"He's stable; that's the best we can hope for without a doctor," Usopp told her, choosing to ignore the exhaustion in her eyes. "How about you?" He glanced at the bandages wrapped around her head.

"Itchy, but fine," Hazel laughed, throwing a light smile his way in an attempt to alleviate his worry. The two were silent for a moment, before Usopp turned towards her once again.

"Hazel, what...what happened?" She clenched her jaw, eyes shifting to her lap as she mulled the answer over in her head.

"She decided our partnership was over, and she went on her way." She sounded bitter, of course she did. She'd only known the girl for a short time, but already Hazel had felt a connection. She'd already decided Nami was someone worth protecting, and to have that thrown back in her face - literally, smack her in the face! - was a hurt she didn't know how to deal with.

"What does that even mean?" Usopp asked quietly, so quietly she almost didn't hear him over the sound of the wind and waves.

"Hell if I know," Hazel said, harsher than she may have meant. "Something's up, and I intend to find out what. She owes me that much." She clenched her arms around herself, facing away from the boy's inquisitive stare. After a tense moment, he stood, brushing himself off to go sit with Johnny and Yosaku. Before he left, he turned to her one more time.

"You really should get some rest. You won't be getting any answers if you end up passing out when we get there."

Hazel grinned despite herself, amused at the boy's scolding. "Yes, sir," she said, sending him a placating smile. Apparently satisfied, Usopp walked away, and to her credit, Hazel leaned fully against the hull of their ship. Her gaze shifted to Zoro, still sleeping only a few feet away from her. Maybe a small nap would be a good idea…

* * *

"There can be no doubt about it," Johnny said, putting down his spyglass. "Sister Nami's headed for Arlong Park."

"Arlong Park?"

The five of them sat on deck, a map spread in front of them that allowed the bounty hunters to plot their course. Hazel and Zoro both had awoken early that morning, still injured but fully rested. Nami and the Going Merry were still far in the distance, having sailed through the night, but it appeared they now at least had an idea of where she might be headed.

"Are we close by?" Hazel asked, glancing at the map. Colors and squiggles stared back at her, revealing absolutely no information other than "you're on the ocean". Yosaku shook his head, pointing at a green splotch on the map that Hazel was pretty sure meant "land".

"We're still a fair distance away," he said, dragging his finger across the map into the blue section. "But Johnny and I were talking last night, and based on her course, we've got a pretty good hunch that's where she's going."

"Ok," Hazel muttered, hand on her chin as she pretended to study the map. "Why is that?"

"There was a certain incident," Johnny spoke up, sitting down next to his partner. "Our collection of wanted posters got scattered after that fight with the Marine lieutenant. Sister Nami seemed interested in one in particular: Saw-Toothed Arlong." Yosaku nodded along.

"And right after we mentioned Arlong's crew has been doing a lot of damage recently, Sister Nami took the treasure and left. It's no coincidence, I say." Hazel hummed, thinking over the new information. What could this Arlong possibly have to do with Nami?

"What do you know about Arlong?" She practically demanded, mind working through the information at hand as fast as possible. Johnny and Yosaku shared a glance.

"This will require a brief history lesson, Sister Hazel," Johnny warned, only to receive a deadpan look from the woman. Getting the message, he quickly dived into the details. "There's a reason the Grand Line is called the 'Pirate's Graveyard.' It's cause of the three great powers that rule those waters. One of those powers is the Shichibukai" There was a pause, maybe for effect, but the Straw Hats merely blinked at the bounty hunters.

"The whosit?"

"The Shichibukai! The seven government-recognized pirate leaders!" Yosaku explained, drawing more confusion from the pirates.

"You mean the government let's some pirates roam free?!" Usopp asked, terror filling his voice at the very notion.

"The Shichibukai inhabit wild regions, and unlicensed pirates are easy targets. The government allows them to raid the seas in return for a cut of their haul. Other pirates call them 'government dogs', but they're tough!" Johnny continued.

"The man who defeated Brother Zoro, Hawkeye Mihawk?" Zoro clenched his jaw at Yosaku's reminder. "He's one of the seven!" Hazel's eyes widened.

"There's six more of that guy?!" That could spell trouble if they weren't careful. "But, wait...what's all this got to do with Arlong and Nami?"

"The problem is one of the seven…Jinbei, the leader of the Fish-man Pirates!"

"Fish-man?" Hazel closed her eyes, thinking, trying to come up with why that was familiar. "Oh! Like mermaids?!"

"Close! Fish-men are close in species to mermaids, but there are some key differences," Johnny told her, though didn't explain further. Hazel supposed, if that was really where Nami was going, she'd find out what those differences were soon enough.

"In exchange for becoming one of the Shichibukai, Jinbei released a holy terror into the East Blue..." Hazel narrowed her eyes, drawing the conclusion.

"Arlong." Yosaku and Johnny nodded, shoulders tense.

"And Nami's sailing straight into his territory? What is she thinking?" Usopp shouted, legs shaking as he stood up in fright.

"Who cares, all that matters is we find her and get the ship back, right?" Zoro spoke up for the first time.

"Don't say that like it's so simple!"

"Usopp's right, it may not be that simple," Hazel said, staring at the map again. She took a deep breath. "We need Luffy." She stood up before anyone could say anything, grabbed a stray hunk of rope, and tied her hair back to make things easier. She made her way over to the port side, rolling her muscles in preparation to dive, but before she could head overboard a collection of arms hauled her back. "Hey! What gives?!"

"You're still concussed! Where do you think you're going?!" Usopp scolded her, quickly hiding behind Zoro when she turned a glare on him.

"I'm gonna go get Luffy! Duh!" She argued, pulling against Johnny and Yosaku's grip on her shoulders. "Lemme go, I'll be fine!"

"No way, Sister Hazel! You need to recover!"

"They're right," Zoro said, pushing to his feet. Hazel glared at the way he wobbled, the strain in his muscles as he clearly pushed down the pain. "I'll go get him."

"You're even more injured!"

"Look," Hazel said, finally pulling free. "Somebody has to go get him and tell him where we're headed. For all we know, he and that cook are lost at sea right now!"

"Then allow me to go, Sister Hazel!" Yosaku spoke up, raising a hand slightly. "I'll swim back towards the Baratie, and tell Brother Luffy the situation." Hazel raised an eyebrow at him, a challenge in her eyes, but he didn't back down.

"_You're_ gonna go? Aren't you _also_ in recovery?"

"I appreciate the concern, but I've fully recovered from my illness. You three sail ahead with Johnny, and the rest of us will meet you there." Hazel stared him down, but couldn't find any reason to argue. It'd been days since they'd met, and he _was_ looking better; at the very least he was better than her or Zoro. _And_ he knew their destination…

"Fine," Hazel acquiesced through gritted teeth, glaring at Zoro as she caught him grinning at her pout. "But be careful." Yosaku nodded, then turned to say goodbye to Johnny. The two exchanged a quick goodbye, one that held a lot more emotion than Hazel would've expected for a short time apart; then the man leapt over the side of the ship, swimming earnestly back the way they'd come. The four remaining watched him go, until he was no longer in sight, and then Johnny turned back to their path ahead.

"We're still a few hours away from Arlong Park, so rest up while you can," the man said, and Hazel was struck by how much more authoritative the duo had sounded over the last 10 minutes than in the entire time she'd known them. Usopp made a comment about changing Zoro's bandages, and Hazel sat down on the deck, listening to the gripes and moans of their lucky-as-fuck swordsman. Her eyes were once again fixed on the Going Merry, so far in the distance. The wind blew through her hair, violet waves falling from their ponytail to brush across her cheeks. She quickly fixed what she could, tying the longer strands back with the makeshift hair ribbon (all of her real ones were still on the Merry, another source of frustration for the woman), tossing the information around in her head.

"_We were never friends, we were business partners!"_

"_I'd never be a pirate!"_

"_Sister Nami seemed interested in one in particular: Saw-Toothed Arlong."_

"_In exchange for becoming one of the Shichibukai, Jinbei released a holy terror into the East Blue…"_

"Oh, Nami…" Hazel whispered under her breath. "What have you gotten yourself into…?"

* * *

"Th-that's the place," Johnny whispered, as their ship finally approached the coast.

"Nami's in there?!" Came Usopp's shaky reply. Hazel and Zoro merely glanced at the approaching building. It was a tall, bright yellow tower with a red pagoda-style roof on each floor. It was surrounded by a large pool of seawater, but the main path to the building was blocked by a large steel gate. Shark head statues were placed strategically around the fencing, meant to be an intimidating decoration, with a rather prominent one perched at the very top of the tower. At the top of the shark's long saw-like nose flew a black flag, with a red sort of symbol that Hazel couldn't make out, though she could guess what it was: the jolly roger of the Arlong Pirates. On the side of the building, she could just make out the words "Arlong Park".

"That's the place…" Johnny said once again, sounding less nervous this time. "Now our troubles begin. First of all, where did Sister Nami dock the ship?"

"So we hack our way in?" Zoro asked, completely serious and beginning to unsheathe his remaining sword.

"What are you thinking?!"

"Are you crazy?! We don't know anything about this place?!"

Before Hazel could blink, Usopp and Johnny had tied Zoro to their boat, effectively pinning him in place despite his shouts of protest. The group ignored him, instead searching the shore for any sign of the Merry.

"There it is!" Usopp shouted, "I found it, the Going Merry!"

"She sure left it in a strange place," Johnny muttered, pulling out his map as Zoro continued to holler behind him. Hazel stood at his shoulder, glancing at the impossible to decipher guide, then turning away again when she got bored of the different colors. "It's near Cocoyashi…"

"Untie me!"

"Settle down!" Usopp scolded, patting the angry swordsman on the chest, prompting the man to flinch. Apparently, he was less afraid when Zoro was tied up like that. "You'll open your wounds! You're still recuperating, you know!" Rolling her eyes, Hazel walked over to block Usopp's next chest pat, stopping the assault on the moss-haired man. Usopp was unbothered, instead raising to his feet to declare to the sea: "Just leave this to me! I'll bring that woman back!"

"You sure got brave when you found out it wasn't at Arlong Park…" Johnny muttered, brows furrowed behind his sunglasses.

"Hard to starboard! Bring us alongside the Going Merry!" Usopp yelled, ignoring the older man who simply did as requested. Hazel decided to let the two handle the sailing, knowing she'd probably end up drowning them all (which one was starboard again?), and instead settled on the deck next to Zoro.

"Psst! Untie me!" He hissed to her, apparently trying a different approach when his shouting didn't work.

"Nuh uh!" She shook her head, earning herself a glare. "You've made enough questionable decisions lately. You're on timeout!"

"Timeout?!"

All conversation halted, including whatever inane thing Usopp was shouting about now, as the group passed a dock. There wasn't anything particularly alarming about this dock. It was pretty typical, made of wood...and it had three figures standing on it. Three fishy figures.

"FULL SPEED AHEAD!" Usopp shouted, to Johnny's quick agreement, and they sailed right past the Going Merry.

"Hey!"

"You're sailing past it!" Zoro was back to yelling, straining against the ropes binding him to the ship.

"ARE YOU BLIND?!" Usopp whirled on the swordsman, causing Hazel's head to pound once again at the noise. "Those were fish-men! Arlong's Pirates, didn't you see?! I don't wanna croak, is that so bad?!"

"Get a hold of yourself…"

"Usopp, shhh…" Hazel hissed, rubbing her temples.

"It's no use, these waters are Arlong's Lake…" Johnny muttered. "What should we do, Brother Usopp?"

"We just won't be able to bring Nami back."

"THAT'S NOT YOUR DECISION!" Hazel bonked him on the head.

"UNTIE ME YOU IDIOT!"

"Hey!" Came a voice from behind them. "I don't recall seeing that ship before!" Uh oh…

"ABANDON SHIP!"

"Wait, you guys!" Zoro yelled as Usopp and Johnny jumped overboard.

"Are you fucking kidding me?!" Hazel yelled, watching them swim away to safety, while the fish-men from before approached the ship.

"Hey, don't leave me like this!" Zoro shouted, but the two were long gone.

"Fucking hell," Hazel muttered, rushing over to untie the swordsman so they could escape or fight or _something_. "Argh, dammit Usopp! Why are you so good at tying knots?!" The fish-men were fast approaching, she could hear them splashing in the water, but she couldn't seem to get through Zoro's ropes. She glanced around for a knife of some kind, but saw nothing; even Zoro's single sword was tucked deep into the rope. "Alright, this is fine. I'll just kick some fish ass and then we'll get you out of here," she breathed, but Zoro shook his head.

"There's no time, just get out of here! I'll meet up with you later!"

"Are you shitting me?!"

"I've been through worse."

"You mean like yesterday?! Like hell I'm leaving you here!"

"Hazel!" He shouted, an edge to his voice she hadn't heard before, at least not towards her. "I'll be fine. Go." She stared at him for barely a second, warring over her decision, but finally groaned and tugged him as far forward by his shirt that the ropes would allow.

"Fine, but if you die, I'll kill you." Zoro grinned, that bravado that was so insufferable and yet so _him_ filling his face.

"Deal. Now go!" Hazel shook her head, letting go, then dove over the side of the ship right as the fish-men began to board.

"Hehehe, we caught 'em," she heard one say as she dove underwater. She was sure they'd seen her, and caught the muffled "wait!" as she swam away. She had no idea where the other two had ended up, but as her head screamed at her to rest, she made her way in the direction she was pretty sure "land" had been.

She gasped for air as she pulled herself onto the shore, having swam longer than she'd expected. She lay on the ground for a minute, regaining her strength, waiting for the pounding in her skull to subside, and tried to think of anything but the swordsman currently headed towards what may be his doom. "Idiots...every last one of them…" she muttered, fixing her ponytail. Rising to her feet, Hazel glanced around, noticing for the first time the destruction that surrounded her.

She stood at the outskirts to a small village, though seeing the state of things, she really hoped it was uninhabited. The ground was ripped to pieces, houses turned upside down. Was this Arlong's doing? What the hell had Nami gotten herself into?

Speaking of Nami…

Taking a deep breath through her nose, Hazel closed her eyes, tuning out the destroyed village for a moment so she could focus. She didn't know how far behind Luffy and Yosaku were, and it was very likely this would end in a hard fight, one that she definitely couldn't handle on her own, concussion or not. She could look for Zoro, but without knowing what she was up against, that seemed like a bad idea. Usopp and Johnny could be anywhere at this point, and since they were new to the island there'd be no one to ask for help locating them. That left one option: the whole reason they came here in the first place.

"Alright," Hazel said to herself, breaking the silence that surrounded her. "Off to find Nami." She opened her eyes, picked a direction, and ventured off into the village.

* * *

"Nami!" Hazel shouted, her voice echoing off the abandoned buildings. She thought she'd heard voices earlier, the sounds of a fight, but when she'd finally made her way over nobody was there. She was also pretty sure she'd seen that building already, but that was probably just a case of the buildings all looking the same. Probably. It was a little eerie, walking through a ghost town alone, her only companion the sound of her own shouts for a woman who'd abandoned her. Them. Anyway.

"NAMI!" She shouted again, turning when she heard an odd thunk behind her. That sounded a bit too heavy for the navigator. Her eyes widened as they landed on the source of the noise, a rather large, imposing figure, glaring its beady eyes down at her from under a pointed hood that strangely seemed to be part of his head. His arms were long, without fingers, instead covered with red-tinged suction cups. His skin was pale, patterned with blue spots along his shoulders and his strange hooded head. The hood had what almost looked like wings attached to the side, fluttering slightly in the wind and seeming to flex; but what really shocked her were the six legs holding him upright. "You're not Nami…"

The squid-man shook his head, his long black braid swishing behind him. He glared harder, and as he spoke Hazel noted it was from a beak, rather than a standard mouth. "What do you want, Human?" The squid clicked at her.

"I'm looking for a navigator, know where I can find one, Squidly?" Instead of answering, the squid-man glared further, something that shocked Hazel as she'd been sure he couldn't possibly glare down at her more without hurting himself, and shot forward with a tentacle arm. "So much for pleasantries…" Hazel muttered, jumping out of the way, much to the complaint of her pounding cranium. She wasn't one to run away from a fight, but if she was being honest with herself (not that she'd ever admit it to anyone else), she didn't think she could last through one right now, especially with an angry squid-person.

Hazel tried to take off through a nearby alley, hoping that maybe she could run fast enough that he'd decide she wasn't worth chasing, but groaned when she heard his pounding footsteps behind her. "Why do I always get the weird ones…" She panted, continuing to try outrunning the fish-man, but she was failing quickly. His steps grew louder and louder, closer and closer, until he reached out again with a tentacle and caught her across the stomach, pulling her backwards. With a grunt, she dropped herself to the ground, using the momentum built up to slide between his legs; at least, that'd been the plan. Instead she barrelled into them and knocked him over. Not what she'd intended, but she'd take it!

Squirming her way out from underneath him, Hazel took advantage of the situation to stomp on his tentacle-hands, relishing a bit in the clear wince that appeared on his hooded face. "Sensitive, huh?" She gloated, standing over his chest to place both feet on his hands, kneeling over to glare in his face. "I'll ask again, where is Nami?"

Her win was short-lived. Spotting movement in the upper reaches of her vision, Hazel glanced up at the pointed hood. The "wings" were flexing, harder than before, and the hood seemed to be undulating as well. Hazel squinted, confused and mildly disgusted at the display, and not knowing enough about squid, fish, men, or any combination of the three to even guess at what was happening. Suddenly, and with a whoosh of air, the squid-man took off from underneath her, knocking her onto her back as he shot a few feet into the air. All she could do was stare in shock as the fish-man came back and stood over her. She vaguely registered the blood falling into her eye, the renewed pounding in her skull from knocking her head against the ground.

"Shit…" she groaned. The fish-man's face grew closer, and her nose wrinkled at his breath as he spoke.

"What does a weakling like you want with our cartographer?"

_...Huh?_

* * *

"Ah, Shoku! What took you so long?" A deep voice bellowed, though from her position on the squid-man's shoulder, she couldn't see who it was. "What've you brought me?"

"This one was looking for a navigator," Squidly (or Shoku, Hazel guessed) grunted, depositing her roughly on the ground. Her head smacked against the concrete, which of course was _exactly_ what she needed today, but as the fish-man had tied her hands behind her, she couldn't even rub the headache away.

"I'm eating a lot of squid for dinner, let me tell you…" she muttered angrily under her breath, secretly hoping nobody heard her. She was really in no condition to have another fight right now.

"Shahaha, look at that, Nami! You have quite the fan club!" Hazel glanced at the one who'd spoken. He was bright purple, sharklike...in fact, he actually likely was a shark, now that she thought about it. He had a very long nose, rivaling Usopp's, only the shark-man's was jagged and saw-like. A saw shark, she concluded, which meant this was the fearsome Arlong.

"Don't be ridiculous, she's with this idiot. They're both just angry they got tricked and lost all their gold," Nami's voice floated over to her, and despite her nausea Hazel's head shot up to glare at her across the pool.

"You gave me a fucking concussion!" She wanted to run over there and return the favor, an eye for an eye, or something like that. A flash of green caught her attention, and she finally noticed Zoro writhing on the ground, hands and legs tied in a similar fashion to her own restraints. "What the hell did you do to him? Why's he soaking wet?!"

Nami just shrugged, appearing unbothered by the whole exchange, as though she did this every day. Maybe she did. "Whatever, don't take it so personal. It's just business."

"I never did like that line…" Hazel grumbled.

"Shahahahaha!" Arlong laughed again, perching on his throne and looking extremely self-important. "Our cold-hearted witch claims another victim, eh?" Alright, this guy could fuck all the way off. "Well, Nami? What should we do with them?"

"Throw them both in jail. I'll deal with them."

"Arlong! Arlong!" A large fish-man ran up, passing the three humans to approach his leader.

"What is it, Comrade?" Arlong sneered.

"The one with the long nose got away!" _Shit, Usopp! _Hazel's eyes widened in alarm, taking small comfort in the knowledge that, at least so far, the boy had managed to evade capture. _Sounds like Johnny must've gotten away too…_

"I think he fled to Cocoyashi, but…" the fish-man trailed off, a nervous lilt to his voice as Arlong grinned.

"Cocoyashi? I just happen to have business there…"

The next thing Hazel knew she was being thrown into a dark room, legs tied at the ankles in addition to her wrists. Wasted effort on their part; it's not like she was in any condition to try fighting them off right now. Not that they needed to know that. She heard her companion grunt as he was tossed unceremoniously next to her, and then they were plunged further into darkness as the door shut.

It was silent for a moment, the only exception being Zoro's scraping against the floor as he sat up fully. Then: "how's your head?"

Hazel snorted, flinching at the pressure that built behind her nose at the action. Damn sinuses. "Still intact," she answered, ignoring the blood still trickling from her forehead. "How're your guts?"

She heard him huff out a short laugh, "Still in place. They sting a little bit from the saltwater though."

"Saltwater?"

"I jumped into the pool."

"You WHAT?!"

"It was to prove a point!" Hazel could practically hear the shrug in his shoulders, the smug bastard.

"When I said I'd catch up with you, I meant, you know...alive," she hissed, glaring through the dark in what she hoped was his direction.

"Hey, I am alive," he answered, still entirely too calm about his physical health for her liking.

"Yeah, for now. Wait till I get my hands on you-!"

She was cut off by the door opening, light pouring into the cell and blinding the both of them briefly. When Hazel turned back to the entrance, she was surprised to see the familiar orange hair of Nami. What was more surprising was that there were two of them.

How hard did she hit her head?

The girl held a knife in her hand, and Hazel's gut clenched at the sight, but she relaxed a little when instead of stabbing them, Nami cut the binds on Zoro's wrists. She heard a clatter, and saw his sword placed between them, the navigator not glancing in their direction at all.

"Escape! Hurry!" Nami commanded in a low voice, an urgency behind it. "Before Arlong gets back!"

"Wait, Nami-!"

"Just go!" And the girl was gone, leaving the two pirates to finish escaping on their own. Zoro finished untying his legs, then came over to help Hazel. Limbs free, she pushed to her feet, immediately reaching for the wall when the world spun around her. She vaguely registered Zoro's hand in her periphery.

"I'm fine," she said, batting it away and standing up straight. Zoro shot her a skeptical look.

"You sure about that?"

"Yes," Hazel huffed, rolling her eyes. "Just because there's three of you right now doesn't mean I can't fight. Now come on!" She led him outside, squinting at the harsh sunlight, only to be met by an alarming sight.

They were surrounded by fish-men.

"Hey." Hazel glanced at the swordsman to her left. "Don't get killed."

"Pffft. I was gonna tell you the same thing," she responded, bracing herself for the fight.

One by one the fish-men attacked, confusion clear on their faces at the fact their prisoners were free. Hazel met them all head on, dodging blows left and right as she responded with her own.

Or at least, she thought she did.

"Hey, that one was mine!" she yelled as her companion struck down another enemy right in front of her.

"Well you weren't hitting the guy, so I thought you could use some help!"

"Listen you-" she quickly threw her fist behind her over her shoulder, the knuckles connecting with a scaly nose and a soft crunch, her foot kicking backwards to knock the fish-man away from her "- I'm doing just fine on my own!"

"Alright," Zoro said, sending her a grin. Where did he get that shirt? "Just checking..."

Hazel rolled her eyes and surveyed the damage around her. Her vision was finally clearing up, just in time to see they'd dispatched all the pirates. Well, Zoro had anyway.

"You sure you're alright?" the man asked, sheathing his sword and coming to stand next to her. Hazel nodded.

"Yeah, I just need a minute."

"You're bleeding," he said, glancing at her forehead. She raised her hand to her eyebrow, feeling the now sticky blood that had pooled there from earlier. So much for Usopp's bandages.

"Nothing we can do about it now," Hazel told him, shrugging her shoulders and sitting on the arm of Arlong's "throne". Zoro moved to follow her, plopping into the seat like he owned the place. "So...got a plan?"

"We could walk out of here now…" Zoro started, thinking aloud. "But we do have a mission to accomplish. I promised Luffy I'd bring that girl back." Hazel nodded, agreeing. "She's definitely up to something fishy. This could get dicey."

"There's definitely more to this story than just 'haha I stole your treasure'..." Hazel mumbled, trying to put the pieces together, but she didn't have them all. Not yet. "What the hell did you get yourself into, Nami…"

**TOOT-TOOT-TOOT!**

"What the hell?"

"Was that a trumpet?" Zoro asked, sounding much less concerned about it than the violet-haired woman sitting beside him. "Come on, let's check it out." He stood up, not bothering to wait for the woman scrambling to catch up as he went to inspect the sound.

"Hey-! Wait up!"

"Momoo just loves roast pig!" came floating through the air as the pair approached the gate, putting the two immediately on guard. Zoro pulled himself to the top of the fence first, reaching down to help Hazel up. On the other side of the gate stood a bright pink octopus-man, holding an impressively large skewered pig, roasted to a crisp. "Did he already eat? Maybe I should eat it…"

"What's with the trumpet?" The fish-man startled, staring at the two with wide eyes.

"Who are you?! I'm Hatchan! Oh, but, call me Hachi!" Huh, introductions. What a pleasant change.

"Are you a fish-man too?" Zoro asked. Hazel just rolled her eyes. Of course he was a fish-man, what kind of a question was that?

Hachi didn't seem offended by the question though, and he happily answered despite still clearly being scared of their sudden appearance. "Of course! I'm a cuddly octopus fish-man!" Hazel smiled. Cuddly, huh? _I suppose, with all those arms._ "But you both look _human_! You Marines? Guests?"

"Guests?" Zoro asked. The humans glanced at each other, reaching an unspoken agreement. "Um, yeah, that's it."

"But Arlong-san isn't here right now," Hachi said, not suspecting them for even a second. Hazel was gonna hate it if she had to beat him up, he seemed nice. Stupid, but nice.

"No, he's not. Do you know where he went?" she asked, smiling sweetly at the octopus-man.

"There's some long-nosed stranger running around. That's our second stranger today. Arlong-san went to Cocoyashi to capture him!" _Usopp…_

"How can we get to Cocoyashi?"

"Get in!" Hachi said, pointing one of his many thumbs towards the large pot floating in the water beside him. "You're guests, right? I'll take you!"

Well, that's convenient. "Uhh, are you sure we'll all fit?" Hazel asked, carefully climbing over the wall after Zoro. The pot _was _pretty large, but it still looked like it'd be a tight fit.

"It'll be fine," the swordsman answered, climbing into the pot. Hazel gave him a skeptical eye, glancing at the tight space. Then, seeing no better option, shrugged her shoulders and made to climb in after him.

As she was about to get in, Hachi's voice stopped her: "That's a nasty cut, there, miss! You'll wanna get that wrapped up! Here-" the octopus-man pulled out a roll of bandages from his pocket, which Zoro took gratefully before Hazel could "-I always keep some on me just in case. Go ahead!"

"Oh! Uhmm, thank you..." Hazel told him, reaching to take the bandages from Zoro, but the man waved her off. Placing her hands on her hips, she glared up at him from the dock, tapping her foot as she waited for him to hand the bandages over. When after a minute he didn't, she finally heaved a sigh and climbed in, missing the furtive smile Hachi was sending the two. When she was finally settled inside the pot, the octopus dove into the water, disappearing beneath the waves as he hitched himself to the pot and began to swim.

It wasn't as bad as she'd thought, and she had a bit of an advantage thanks to her smaller size; but there still wasn't much room to move around, and every time the vessel tipped, she found herself bumping against Zoro. She managed to avoid hitting his injuries at least, and the man didn't complain.

As they made their way to the village, Zoro turned to her, taking it upon himself to begin wrapping the bandages around her head. "Hey, I can do it!"

"I got it, now move your hair," he instructed, shaking his head and leaving no room for argument. She did as he asked, brushing her bangs away from her forehead. He stepped closer as he worked, her view focusing over his shoulder, the Conomi Islands passing by them in a blur. They stood close enough for his scent to wash over her, despite her best efforts to avoid what she was sure would be pure sweat; she was pleasantly surprised to find that instead he smelled faintly of steel, as though his weapon of choice were truly a part of him. There was something almost comforting about that, and Hazel found herself relaxing under his touch. The two were silent, his hands surprisingly soft as he wound the cloth around her head. "Too tight?" Zoro asked after a bit, leaning back slightly to look her in the eye.

Hazel shook her head, dropping her bangs once he finished tucking the end of the bandage. "I didn't know you could do that so well," she said sheepishly, feeling a little silly to have the normally stoic swordsman doting on her. It was a strange role reversal she didn't know how to feel about.

Zoro gave her a grin. "I know how to do some things, you know," he teased, stepping back fully to lean against their vessel. He was still close, the pot not really leaving any room for him to move away, but somehow in her mind, the distance seemed far greater. _I must still be dizzy..._

"I know that, I just figured most of those things had to do with stabbing people," Hazel shot back with a smirk, one he matched with a raise of his brow. Instead of answering, the swordsman gave a small shrug, as if in agreement, and the two turned back to watch the passing scenery.

"We're here!" Hachi said after a short while, depositing the pair onto a wooden dock. "This is Cocoyashi! Arlong-san should be here!" The large smile was still on his face, and Hazel could swear he was blushing as he watched Zoro help her out of the pot. Or was that just how pink his face always looked? What a weirdo…

"Thanks."

"Don't mention it! Have a nice day!" He began to swim off, waving goodbye behind him before disappearing completely.

"Bye. What a strange fish-man…" Zoro murmured, waving goodbye to the figure. Hazel chuckled and shook her head.

"He seems nice. Too bad he's one of the 'bad guys'."

The two turned around, facing the village they'd been brought to. From the shore, Cocoyashi appeared empty, but it was the only lead they had. "That saw-nose is around here somewhere…"

"So we'd better find our long-nose," Hazel finished Zoro's thought, and squaring their shoulders, the pair headed into the heart of the village. Unfortunately, any luck they'd had was run out. Every person they asked said the same thing: Usopp had been captured and taken to Arlong Park.

"Great," Hazel huffed after the fifth person they asked walked away. She rolled her shoulders and adjusted her ponytail. "Guess this time we gotta take the long way around…"

* * *

Hazel and Zoro were running through the woods, trying to make their way back to Arlong Park quickly to save Usopp. Hazel's head pounded with every step, but the bandages held firm and her wound didn't reopen. Small victories, she supposed. Her brain, on the other hand, still seemed to be having issues; she could've sworn she'd heard a loud crash, but that'd be ridiculous. What could even cause that out here?

"Huh? What was that?" Zoro asked, glancing in the direction she'd heard the noise.

"You mean I didn't imagine that?"

The crashing continued, along with what sounded like the cracking of tree trunks, but still the two pushed on running. "What a racket," Zoro muttered. "Did a bomb hit the island?"

"Forget it, we need to get to Usopp!" Hazel yelled, trying not to get distracted herself. That really was loud. "If we don't hurry, he'll get himself killed!"

Suddenly, crashing through the trees came a large boat, sailing over the dirt straight towards them. And screaming in delight at the bow was a familiar boy with a straw hat. "Hey, Zoro! Hazel!"

"Luffy?!"

* * *

**Trivia: Shoku (aka Squidly) is sorta based on the Japanese Flying Squid! Though the color scheme is actually based on the Gooper Blooper from Super Mario Sunshine...no I'm not sorry haha**


	8. Chapter 8

**Oh hey, uploading exactly one month after the last chapter update? That was totally unplanned, promise! I'm going to be shooting for at least 1 update a month from now on; obviously this may not always happen, but it's the goal I'm setting! Things have been getting a bit better for me IRL, so I'm hopeful it'll reflect on how often I get to write. Please let me know what you think of this chapter! I'm not used to writing tension, and I'm still iffy on fight scenes, so any feedback would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!**

* * *

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU GUYS DOING?!" Zoro yelled from among the wreckage, holding his now bleeding head as he glared at his newly arrived crew.

"What? We came to bring Nami back," Luffy said, as though he hadn't just rammed an entire ship into his sister and their fellow crewmate. "Haven't you found her yet?"

"Luffy…" Hazel groaned, sitting up to glare at her brother. This was the third time she'd hit her head in 24 hours, though thankfully Zoro had taken the brunt of the impact this time. As the ship had been about to hit them, the swordsman grabbed her by the arm, twisting her around so he'd essentially shielded her. He couldn't do anything about them hitting the ground, however.

"Oh, my poor darling!~ Are you alright, my sweet? Apologies for such brutish behavior!~" Hazel blinked at the heart-eyed blonde that suddenly swooped in front of her, and she was no longer sure if the dizziness was from the multiple head injuries or the assault to her senses. "Oi! Swordsman! You're supposed to protect a lady!"

"Uhm, excuse me-"

"Tch, she can take care of herself!" Zoro protested, glaring at the blonde. "It's not my fault she was running around like an idiot."

"Excuse-"

"You take that back, you-!"

"HEY! I'M TALKING HERE! Both of you shut up! We've got more important things going on!" Hazel yelled, causing both men to flinch and glare away from each other. "That's better…" she mumbled, checking her bandages once again. Still intact. She'd have to thank Zoro later, when he wasn't being such a brat.

"Where are Usopp and Johnny?" Luffy asked, pulling everyone's attention back to the task at hand.

"Shit! There's no time to talk!" Zoro shouted, turning to continue running towards Arlong Park.

"Huh? What's wrong?"

"Arlong has Usopp," Hazel explained, preparing to follow Zoro. "If we don't get to him quick, he'll-"

"Usopp's dead!" Five heads swiveled in the direction of the declaration, each shocked to see Johnny standing there in the clearing with tears dripping from his sunglasses. "You're too late!"

"Johnny?"

"Brother Usopp's been killed by Sister Nami!"

"What?!" They were stunned, shocked; Hazel was having a hard time processing what Johnny had said.

_Usopp...dead? And Nami killed him?_

"You take that back!" Luffy yelled, shocking her out of her thoughts. He stormed up to the bounty hunter and grabbed him by the front of the shirt. "Or I'll send you flying!"

"Luffy!"

"Stop it, Luffy!" Zoro tried to intervene. "It's not Johnny's fault!"

"He's talking crazy! There's no way Nami would kill Usopp! She's our friend!" Hazel wasn't sure what to think; she hadn't thought Nami would betray them like this in the first place, and she'd obviously never expected the girl to knock her overboard. But _killing_ Usopp…

_"We were never friends…"_

"If you don't wanna believe it, fine! But I saw it with my own eyes!" Johnny cried, and Hazel bit her lip as she grew more conflicted. Not for the first time since this whole thing started, she felt as though she were missing the pieces to a larger puzzle, and it was starting to get beyond aggravating.

"Who's your friend, Luffy?" Came another voice from the clearing, and the group looked up in surprise. Speak of the devil…

"Nami..."

"Why did you come here?" Nami asked, standing in the middle of the clearing, bo staff at the ready as she stared the group down. Once again, Hazel noticed a deadness to her gaze, like a barrier had been thrown up to prevent anyone from seeing her true self. How was it that she looked that way _now_ if this was supposedly who she really was? You'd think a con artist would have more to hide _during_ the con, not after her scheme was revealed.

"Whaddaya mean? _You're_ our friend!" Luffy answered easily, staring at the woman in confusion. "We came to get you!"

"What a nuisance." Nami crossed her arms, gazing at them as if they were dirt on the bottom of her shoe. "Friends? Don't make me laugh. You're a bunch of pathetic misfits!" Hazel's jaw clenched and her eyes narrowed. She'd sure fit in nicely with this "bunch of pathetic misfits" before…

"Nami-swan!~ Nami-swan!~" Came a sudden shout from the blonde next to her. Sanji was waving his arm, trying to get the younger girl's attention. "It's me!~ Don't you remember? Come back to us!~"

"You stay out of this!" Zoro cut him off by getting in his face. "You'll complicate the story!"

"So?" Sanji glared angrily back at the swordsman. "Love is always a hurricane!"

"Didn't I tell you guys to shut up?!" Hazel scolded, jumping between the two boys and pushing them away from each other. "Now's not the time!"

"Damn you! I'm telling you, this woman is a witch!" Johnny continued to yell, angrily pointing in Nami's direction. She stood there, seemingly unaffected as she took the accusations. "In order to get her meat-hooks on some hidden treasure, she's joined Arlong's Pirates! She butchers people like pigs! She was rotten from the start! She made fools of us all, brothers! I saw this witch stab Brother Usopp to death with my own eyes!"

"Really? _Her_?" Hazel couldn't help but ask, recalling the woman they'd first met. She'd been terrified by the idea of killing someone, but somehow she could stab Usopp to death? Had all that been an act too?

"So what? You want to kill me?" Nami asked with a tired smile. The entire group stared at her with wide eyes. "Right now, Arlong is out to kill Roronoa Zoro and his crew, because Zoro had to go and do something stupid."

_Well_...yeah, sure, they'd blame that one on Zoro.

"You may have monstrous powers, but you're no match for a real monster." Nami sounded...resigned. Sad, almost. Her tone of voice didn't match the tone of her stance. Hazel glanced at the others to see if anyone else had noticed, but they were all too focused on what she'd said. "If you hang around this island, you _will_ wind up being killed." Hazel's eyes narrowed at the warning, feeling as though things were sliding into place. She just couldn't see it yet. "Not that it matters to me, though."

"That's nothing to us," Zoro declared. "Where's Usopp?"

"Bottom of the ocean." She smirked as if she'd said something funny.

"Cut the crap!" Zoro rushed at the woman, hand reaching for his lone sword before Hazel could even react.

"Wait, Zoro-!"

"You're the one who'd better cut the crap!" Sanji yelled, leaping forward and nearly taking Zoro out with a kick to the face. "What kind of swordsman attacks a young lady, Roronoa Zoro?"

"The kind who doesn't discriminate?" Hazel quipped, unable to help herself.

"What? You don't even know what's going on here! Back off!" Sanji smirked around his cigarette.

"I guess I'd be irritated too, coming right off an insulting defeat."

"Hey-!" Hazel started, cut off once again by the swordsman.

"Watch that mouth of yours!"

"Mind your own business, you damn bastard!" Yosaku jumped between them, attempting to calm the storm brewing between the two, but Hazel had heard enough. She stomped over, nudged the bounty hunter out of her way, and knocked the cook's and the swordsman's heads together.

As the two stood clutching their noggins in agony, she placed her hands on her hips and fixed them both with a glare that she'd only ever had to use a few times, on another group of bickering boys. "_I'm not telling you again_! Cut it out, or when we get the ship back you're _both_ getting locked in the bathroom with Luffy!"

Zoro glared at her, then seemed to remember the last time and backed down, though not without an angry huff. Sanji backed down as well, but to Hazel's horror, he almost seemed to have enjoyed that. _Ew_. "That's better. We don't have time to be fighting each other right now!"

"She's right!" Nami said, having remained silent through the exchange. "If you wanna fight each other, then sail somewhere far away and do it. We don't like outsiders sticking their noses in our business!" Nami turned her left side towards them, showing off the inked jolly roger on her arm. "I only pretended to be your friend so I could get my hands on your loot! Now you're broke, so our friendship is over! Take your boat back, find yourselves a navigator, and go look for your stupid One Piece!" Nami brandished her bo staff at the group, anger lighting up her face. "Now get lost! I'm sick of the sight of you!" As soon as it came, the emotion left her face, and she once again retreated in on herself. "Goodbye."

"Nami…" Hazel stormed towards the woman, stopping just short of actually touching her. She'd been beaten, hurt in more ways than just physical; she wasn't about to let her get away with insults and a short goodbye! "You think this is that easy?! Huh?! You think you can just pick people up and drop them whenever you want?! Friendship doesn't work like that, Nami! I know there's something else going on with you, tell us what it is so we can help you! Stop trying to send us away!"

Nami stared at her, wide eyed and scared, then her gaze hardened once again and she turned away. Hazel's fist shook, desperate to reach out and grab the girl, but she refrained, instead turning her head away as well. Her eyes burned, but she willed it away. "At least tell me why, Nami…" Hazel ground out, catching the younger woman's attention. "You at least owe me that much."

"I don't owe you anything!" Nami shouted, the statement breaking through her barrier.

"What do you call this, huh?!" Hazel yelled, angrily pointing to her head, but the girls' argument was cut off by the _thump_ of a body behind them.

"Brother Luffy?!" They turned, surprised to see Luffy laying in the middle of the clearing, hands behind his head and his eyes closed as if in slumber.

"Goodnight!" The boy declared.

"Goodnight?!"

"Now in the middle of the road?!"

Hazel raised an eyebrow at her brother's antics, ignoring the bounty hunters' confused shouts. "I don't wanna leave this island, and I'm not interested in what's happening _on_ the island. Now I'm a little sleepy, so I'm gonna take a nap."

The rest of their little group gave various exasperated reactions, but Hazel stayed silent, her brother's attitude bringing her back from the edge. With a deep breath, Hazel locked eyes with the orange-haired girl for a moment, then squared her shoulders and sat next to Luffy's snoring form, effectively declaring her position on the matter.

"Fine!" Nami growled out, her once calm expression awash with pure rage. "Whatever! Go ahead and die!" And she turned on her heel and ran off into the trees. The six remaining figures were silent as they watched her disappear, and only once she'd fully gone was that silence broken by the bounty hunters' objections.

"Hey, Brother Zoro! What on earth are you thinking?! Arlong is out to kill us! So why aren't we running away?!"

"Now that we know what Nami's really like," Johnny agreed, "there should be no reason at all to stay on this island!"

"A reason for staying on this island?" Zoro asked them. "There is one." He turned his gaze towards Luffy, eyes bouncing between his captain and the violet-haired woman sitting calm next to him. "_He's_ staying here." Hazel smirked, even though she knew they couldn't see it.

"Don't tell us you're still gonna try to get her back too, Brother Zoro!"

"I have nothing to do with it. _He_ decides who we have as a navigator." Hazel could hear the two struggling to answer him, clearly at war over what they should do. As far as she was concerned, they were free to go. The two had no obligation to them_ or_ Nami; they weren't pirates, and they clearly felt this was too much for them. Better to leave now if they weren't fully committed.

"A-All right! Understood! It was a short reunion, but our role as guides ends here!" Johnny decided after a moment, voice only a tad shaky.

"Same for me!" Yosaku agreed. "I don't wanna deliberately wind up killed!"

"Yeah. Take care," Zoro told them, not sounding surprised or disappointed by their decision. Hazel was secretly glad they were leaving now; she enjoyed their company well enough, but she needed time to think about the current situation, and she couldn't do that with them yelling all the time. She raised an arm in silent farewell as they left, not turning from her position as the group once again descended into silence, now two people shorter.

The wind blew through her curls as she sat, worry coursing through her over her friend's situation. If she could just get Nami to _talk_ to her, hell, _any_ of them! She didn't know the exact details (though the nosy part of her _desperately_ wanted to know), but she didn't need to, to know that Nami wasn't doing any of this because she wanted to. Her entire demeanor, her choice of words, they all led Hazel to believe she was trying to push them away for their own good. Hazel couldn't fault her for that; she'd done it herself once...though the stakes certainly weren't as high.

Nami _did _think of them as friends (_or maybe part of me just hopes she does_), and she didn't want them to end up dead at the hands of some fishy asshole (_but how did _you_ end up an officer in his crew, Nami?_), but Hazel couldn't in good conscience leave her to fight this battle on her own. She didn't trust Arlong, obviously, and deep down she thought Nami didn't either, so what did he have on her that had Nami working with him so closely?

"Hey." Sanji's voice cut through the fog of Hazel's agonized thoughts, and she welcomed the reprieve.

"Yeah?" Zoro responded.

"Why do you suppose Nami-san was crying?"

"She was crying?" Was she? Hazel tried to think, to remember any sign of tears on the woman's face. Hazel had been too angry at her to notice. She'd taken every shout and accusation thrown at her without even a flinch.

"Inside her heart." Huh. Sanji was more observant than she'd given him credit for. Seems it didn't just extend to a woman's outward features. Zoro just scoffed.

"You sure they weren't tears of grief for killing Usopp?" Hazel rolled her eyes unseen.

"Yeah, right. Are you serious?" Sanji asked, and Hazel could hear the grin in his voice. "Do you honestly believe Nami-san killed Long-nose?"

Zoro didn't answer, and for a moment only Luffy's snores punctuated the silence. Then the swordsman spoke once more: "Nami didn't kill him. Is that what you're tryin' to say?"

"Am I wrong?" Sanji asked, and Hazel couldn't help the snort that escaped her. The two men turned to her, surprised to find she'd been listening, and she turned her gray eyes on them with a sarcastic grin.

"Of course she didn't kill him. Trickery is her specialty, remember?" Zoro and Sanji blinked at her as they took in her words; clearly they were intrigued by her wise insight, in her opinion. At least, that's how she chose to interpret the hearts in the cook's eyes.

"I wonder…" Zoro muttered, staring off in the distance. "I did make her out to be a small fry who can't even watch a guy die. She might've done it out of frustration."

"Seriously?" Hazel glared at him.

"Whaddya mean 'small fry'?!" Sanji snapped, glaring at the swordsman. Hazel turned her glare on him; that threat from earlier still stood. "WHAT'S SO SMALL ABOUT NAMI-SAN'S CHEST?!"

"Sanji, what the actual _fuck_ are you talking about?!" Hazel yelled at him, absolutely disgusted, watching as he attacked Zoro for his perceived comment.

"Is that all you can think about-!" the swordsman yelled in response, equal amounts disgusted and confused at the cook's attitude and brandishing his sheathed sword. Hazel ran to pry the two off each other before their attacks landed, but something else came between them before she could.

And that thing...was Usopp's face.

"He's alive…"

"No, I think he's dead now…"

"...You idiots…"

* * *

"USOPP!" Luffy cried, shaking the lifeless form of their sniper. "Did Nami do this to you?!"

"Well, actually," Sanji piped up, pointing between him and Zoro, "It was Zoro and me."

"It was _you_," Zoro growled.

"It was _both_ of you," Hazel scolded, glare fixed firmly on the two men who'd quickly flown to the top of her shit list. And that's saying something, considering their current situation.

"L-Luffy! You're here?!" Usopp stammered out, gritting his teeth through the pain.

"Yeah, just got here!"

"Oh, I came too!" Sanji shot in, waving to the boy whose head he'd just kicked in. "Good to work with you!"

It was like someone lit a fire underneath Usopp. He shot up out of Luffy's arms, on his feet like nothing had happened as he glared at the cook. "Someday I'm gonna kill you!"

"Oh! You're pretty alright after all!"

"Shut up!"

"Speaking of which," Zoro started, pulling the sniper's attention towards him, "we heard Nami killed you."

"Told ya she didn't," Hazel told him, sticking her tongue out.

"That damn Johnny!" Luffy whined, popping up from the ground. "He _was_ talking nonsense after all!"

"No…" Usopp began, sweat beading his brow. "In a way, it's not a lie…" The rest of the crew looked at him in question. "It's actually the opposite! Nami saved my life!" Well that was an interesting turn of events, though Hazel did suppose that made more sense to her than the idea of Nami killing someone. "She's got some ulterior motive for being with those Fish-men! That's what I think!"

"Then we're in agreement," Hazel nodded. "This whole thing has struck me as odd from the first second. She's in some serious trouble."

"Obviously," Sanji added.

"So, what do we do? Do we storm Arlong Park?" Zoro asked.

"H-Hold on! We gotta find out what the story with Nami is first!" Usopp protested, waving his hands in the three's faces.

"It's no use, either way." The group turned to the newcomer, a tall girl with short, periwinkle hair and tribal tattoos on her right arm. "No matter what you guys do, Arlong's rule won't come to an end."

"Nojiko!"

"Who's she?" Luffy asked Usopp.

"Nami's older sister."

"Nami has a sister?" Hazel asked, surprised by the revelation.

"Nami-san's older sister?!" Sanji cooed, drawing Hazel's ire once again. "No wonder she's so beautiful!"

"Oi! Not the time!" She hissed, though it went unnoticed. Just as well, she supposed, as she wasn't in the mood for him to turn his affections back on her right that moment.

"What do you mean it's no use?" Zoro asked, also ignoring the cook's actions.

"Please, don't get any more involved with this village." Nojiko requested evenly. "Leave Nami alone. I'll explain the circumstances."

"Circumstances?"

"You mean why she joined Arlong's group?" Usopp asked.

"Yes. You'll feel like leaving the island once you hear it."

"Doubtful…" Hazel muttered, having already made up her mind on the matter. She wanted to know the truth, but she didn't want to hear it from Nojiko. And no matter what the circumstances were surrounding Nami's situation, she wasn't about to just leave her to deal with it alone.

"Alright," Usopp agreed. "Let's hear this reason or whatever, then." Before Nojiko could respond, a so far unusually silent Luffy decided to speak up.

"I'll pass."

"H-Hey!"

"I don't care about her past." Luffy began to walk away, past Nojiko and towards the trees.

"Where are you going, Luffy?" Sanji called.

"For a walk."

"A-A walk?! You're not gonna listen to this?!" Usopp yelled after him, shock lacing his voice. Nojiko watched the boy leave in surprise.

"No. I'll pass."

"Hey, wait up, Luff! I'll join you!" Hazel ran after him, ignoring her crewmates' inquiring looks. She paused for a second next to Nojiko, giving her a kind smile. "No offense, but I think I'd prefer to learn Nami's reasons from the woman herself."

"I'm telling you, butt out!" Nojiko yelled.

"Nojiko," Hazel interrupted before the woman could protest further. "I get it, you want to protect your little sister, " she glanced at Luffy, growing smaller as he walked down the path, "and so do we." Ignoring the woman's look of surprise, Hazel walked away, following along after her brother.

* * *

The two walked in silence for a long while, until trees turned to rice paddies and until those turned into buildings. The breeze did wonders to clear Hazel's mind, and as they approached the village there was a sense of calm that settled over her. That calm was dashed, however, when she noticed the approaching crowd of Marines. She grabbed Luffy's arm, pulling him out of the way, and the siblings watched curiously as they passed by, led by an older man with scars littering his entire body. Hazel's gaze slid to the Marine captain, a snivelly looking man with a mustache like whiskers, and mouse ears sewn into his cap. Well, at least the guy knew he was a rat.

"What do the Marines want with Nami?" Hazel heard the scarred man ask as he walked by. The rat-man gave a suspicious snicker, but no clear answer otherwise, instead telling the man to just lead the way. Her eyes narrowed in suspicion, dread and worry settling into her stomach, but she let the group go for now. She didn't want to accidentally make things worse for Nami.

"Hmm…" Luffy hummed, watching the group leave the village. "How come that guy has a pinwheel on his head?!"

"That's the thing you noticed?!" Hazel snapped at him, but the tension in her body lessened, and she plopped herself down beside a palm tree. "We should wait around here. I have a bad feeling."

"Don't you always?" Luffy teased, sitting beside her. He laughed at the glare Hazel threw him.

"Ha ha…" she said with a scowl. "A worse feeling…"

"A pinwheel, huh?" Luffy said suddenly.

"You still on that?"

"It was so cool!" Hazel shook her head with a smile, rolling her eyes a bit. "I thought up a good move!"

"Well at least something good's come out of this whole thing, huh?" Hazel joked, when suddenly shots rang out beyond the trees, from the direction the Marines had gone in.

Heart hammering in her chest, Hazel jumped to her feet, as though she could get a better glimpse if she stood. The waiting was agony, and what felt like hours later (but was really only about a minute), figures emerged frantically from the woods. A crowd quickly formed around them as they shouted for a doctor, but Hazel could clearly make out Nami's orange head of hair.

Quickly approaching the crowd, Hazel was shocked to find Nojiko on the ground, bleeding from her side. "Nojiko! Nami, what happened?!" she yelled, kneeling beside the wounded woman.

"Nami, can I help?" Luffy asked with a smile, apparently not sensing the urgency of the situation.

"You're still here?!" Nami snarled, knocking Hazel back and storming up to Luffy. She pulled his shirt into her fist, her face filled with a rage unlike any other as she leaned in a screamed: "THIS HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH YOU! Get off the damn island already!" and she threw the boy to the ground, ignoring the shouts of the villagers as she ran off in the other direction.

Hazel helped Luffy up, her gaze fixed on the direction Nami ran. After he dusted himself off, Luffy led the way back to their tree, resuming his position leaning against the tree. Hazel raised a brow at him, concerned that they weren't following the poor girl, but didn't say anything. Surely, Luffy had his reasons.

"What's _her_ problem?" Hazel smacked him on the back of the head. "Hey!"

"You idiot!"

"That's it!" Hazel and Luffy looked up at the scarred man's shout, watching the gathered villagers curiously. "Get your weapons! We're going to fight!" His order was met with a resounding roar, a battle cry, as the rest of the village found whatever they could use as a weapon. "Eight years ago we chose to live in disgrace. And we made a vow! No matter how painful or insulting their rule was, as long as Nami was all right, we would fight on by surviving!

"But this is the last straw! If there's no hope for us to buy our freedom, then I say, let's die fighting for it! Those Fish-men played on that girl's goodness from the start. They must pay for that! Any objections?!" Hazel watched as he was met with shouts of agreement, every person in Cocoyashi expressing their desire to fight for their lives. Then, from the corner of her eye, a flash of orange ran past, and Nami stood facing her friends and family.

"STOP!" She yelled, before fixing a smile on her face. "Wait just a little longer! I'm going to try again!" Hazel could hear the way her voice shook, and her jaw clenched with every word that came out of Nami's mouth. "Just give me one more chance! It'll be easy this time…" she was cut off by the scarred man pulling her into a hug, and though Hazel couldn't hear what was said, she could hazard a guess.

"But now you should leave the island," he said, louder than everything else. Nami stared at the man in shock, tears at the corners of her eyes as Nojiko, all patched up, approached.

"He's right! You're strong and cunning, and you have dreams!"

"Nojiko! Stop it, everyone!" Nami shouted, pointing a small knife in their direction, as if she could hold them back through will alone. "I...I don't want anyone else to be hurt by them! They'll kill you if you fight!"

Hazel hung her head as the man simply said: "We know." She heard the clatter of the knife as it hit the ground.

"It's no use, Nami, our minds are made up!" Another voice, the doctor from earlier, yelled.

"Now step aside, Nami!" The crowd pushed past the young woman, weapons raised as they marched. "Forward, people! Maybe we can't win, but we'll give those fiends a good fight!"

As the crowd left the village, Hazel felt worry gnaw at her gut when Nami fell to her knees. She watched as the girl clutched at her tattooed arm, and both women's gazes flitted to the bloody knife still lying in the road.

_Oh no!_

Faster than Hazel could react, Nami's hand gripped around the knife, plunging it deep into her upper arm. Her heart clenched at the girl's screams, rage and sorrow wrapping around every cry of Arlong's name. Blood ran down her arm, pooling beneath her palm as she stabbed it over and over and over again; before finally being stopped by a firm hand wrapping around her wrist, preventing her from hurting herself further. Hazel knelt in front of the shattered woman, wrapping her hand around Nami's bandaged one in some effort to reach her. Nami didn't even see her. Instead she turned her gaze behind her, staring directly into Luffy's impassive face. "What are you doing?! You don't know anything!"

"Yeah, I don't know anything," Luffy answered, a beacon of light against the storm assaulting Nami; but she couldn't yet see it through the fog.

"This has nothing to do with you!" she yelled, pulling up piles of sand to throw at the boy behind her. "I told you, leave this island!" Hazel squeezed her hand as she sobbed, wishing she could do more, but not wanting to scare the poor girl further. She caught the sun glinting in the corner of her eye, and quickly tucked the fallen knife out of site in her back pocket.

"Yeah, you told me." Hazel bit her lip as the girl finally dissolved into tears, her uninjured hand reaching up in an attempt to cover them. She squeezed Hazel's hand back.

"Luffy…Hazel…" Nami looked back at the rubber-boy, tears on full display. "Help me…"

Without another word, Luffy raised a hand to his straw hat, removing it from his head and plopping it onto the navigator's orange locks. He stalked past the women sitting on the ground, oblivious to Nami's surprise. When he was a few feet away, he took a deep breath, filling his lungs and shouting: "OF COURSE I WILL!" Hazel smirked, catching Nami's gaze.

"You didn't think we'd just leave you, right?" she said with a wink, then turned her gaze to her newly arrived crew. "It's about time you all got here!" Her jibe went unacknowledged, but it didn't matter. As Luffy passed, each of the men stood, walking with their captain side by side toward Arlong Park.

"Let's go," was all Luffy said, and with a shout of affirmation, the quartet disappeared over the hill. Hazel and Nami watched them go, mixed expressions on their faces, before the older woman stood, pulling the younger to her feet.

"H-Hazel, aren't you going to follow them?" Nami asked shakily, but Hazel just shrugged, a soft smile on her face.

"I'll catch up later, don't worry. You're more important right now." Seeing that she was about to burst into tears again, Hazel kept talking, "know anywhere we can get that arm patched up?" Nami gave a shaky nod, wiping her tears away, and led the older woman off without a word. They headed into the trees, a ways past the village, to a rather tiny house nestled in a grove of tangerine trees. Nami didn't offer any explanation of whose house it was, and Hazel didn't need to ask; instead she followed her inside silently, waiting at the table for Nami to find the bandages. Once both women were sitting down, Hazel began to work, doing her best to carefully wrap the girl's bleeding arm in the fabric.

"I owe you an explanation…" Nami said as she worked, flinching slightly when Hazel shook her head.

"No, you really don't. Your past isn't my business, and I forgave you ages ago. See? My head barely even hurts anymore!" Hazel tried to joke, but winced at Nami's sniffled reaction. "If you really want to tell me, I'll listen...but I don't need to know for me to want to help you." She finished wrapping the bandage, leaning back to admire her work with a grin. "Look at that! I'm learni-oof!" The air rushed out of her lungs at Nami's tight embrace, and with a low chuckle, Hazel rested her arms across the shaking girl's back, rubbing circles with her thumb into her shoulder.

* * *

"You sure you'll be good on your own?" Hazel asked as the two exited the house.

"Yeah, you go catch up with the guys," Nami answered with a smile. Her cheeks were still stained with tears, but she'd calmed down from earlier. Now she just needed a minute to catch her bearings, but it was a minute Hazel didn't have. "Oh, here-" she pulled an elastic out of her pockets, handing it over as a gesture of goodwill "-your hair keeps falling out."

Hazel ditched what was left of the rope holding her hair back, pulling her curls back into a much neater ponytail. "Thanks! Uhh…" she reached into her back pocket, pulling out the knife she'd stashed there earlier. "I don't suppose you want this back?" Nami shook her head.

"You keep it. You'll get better use out of it than I will," she said, gazing at the knife with a sad expression, and Hazel replaced it in her pocket, within easy reach. With that done she squared her shoulders, gave a nod to her friend, and headed back in the direction of Arlong Park.

She did her best to hurry along without tiring herself out, but as she crested the hill near the Fish-man's lair she could feel her lungs heaving and her head pounding. What she'd said to Nami about her head barely hurting hadn't been entirely true; she'd just been trying to make the girl feel better. "Just power through, Hazel," she told herself. "Just one more fight, and then you can rest."

She heard the crowd before she saw them, the villagers of Cocoyashi standing at the gates to Arlong Park, blocked by two familiar faces. Johnny and Yosaku waved to Hazel as she ran up, not surprised to see her in the least, and easily let her pass to meet her crewmates. She arrived just in time to see the newest member of the Straw Hats kick one of the Fish-men into the wall, causing him to pass out amongst the dusty rubble. Zoro was kneeling on the ground, looking rather worse for wear, and Arlong sat on a large concrete slab, calmly watching his men fight. Fallen Fish-men littered the ground, among them the octopus from earlier; there was no sign of her Squidly friend. In fact, now that she thought about it, Luffy was missing too…

"Hazel-chwan!~" Sanji cooed, running up to her. Hazel ignored him, frantically looking around for her brother.

"Yeah, hi Sanji, where's Luffy?!" Zoro lazily lifted a finger, pointing at the pool of sea water in front of him. Hazel's eyes widened.

"But don't worry, the cook says he's fi- WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" But Hazel didn't respond, as she'd already dived deep into the sea.

Her eyes stung in the saltwater, but she forced them to stay open, searching the bottom of the sea floor for any sign of Luffy. Instead, she found Nojiko. The woman was pushing down on something soft. In fact, it was a very familiar soft thing: the torso of a certain captain. _That idiot!_ she thought, frantically swimming towards the figures, only slightly relieved at the sight of Luffy's extremely stretched out neck. Then something pulled her back.

Hazel fought the instinct to scream as a tentacle slithered around her body. So that's where Squidly had been hiding. He wrapped his tentacle around her further and squeezed; it almost felt like one of Luffy's hugs, except it was slimier, and her body felt like it was being squeezed through a tube. He was trying to crush the life out of her. She struggled against his hold, her lungs screaming, when her hand brushed against the handle of Nami's knife. She grabbed hold of it and swung up, cutting through the pocket of her shorts, and twisted her wrist to stab him in the arm. The squid let out a short screech, loosening his grip just enough for Hazel to slide out.

She swam to the surface, taking advantage of his distraction, and gasped for air as she breached the water. Her success was short-lived. Less than a second later her opponent flew to the surface. That damn hood of his pulsated as he glared at her, his fist clenching around her knife, crushing it. He shot forward, and would have knocked her to the bottom of the ocean had she not moved out of the way. She hadn't been expecting it when they'd fought earlier, but the move was no longer a surprise to her.

Hazel dove back into the water, trying to think of some way to beat him and help free Luffy. The squid-man shot at her again, his hood propelling him forward like a jet stream in the water. She continued dodging, nearly letting out her air when he brushed by her. Had she been just a second later, her organs would probably have been crushed from the force.

And then it hit her.

...Not the squid. A plan.

She began to swim towards Nojiko and Luffy, motioning with her head towards the surface of the water. _Move!_ Nojiko seemed confused for a moment, then recognition lit her features as the squid appeared behind Hazel once again. The woman swam out of the way, leaving Hazel with enough room to enact her plan. _This is only gonna work once; make it count, Hazel…_

She was close to the slab now, only a few more feet and she could touch it. The water shifted around her as the squid powered up his propulsion. Clenching her jaw, Hazel dodged out of the way as he shot passed her. His head struck the concrete slab. It broke apart.

Hazel watched in triumph as her brother's body snapped up to meet his head, and when the Fish-man seemed to be down for the count, she made her way to the surface as well. She pulled herself to the side of the pool when she broke through the water, coughing slightly and taking deep breaths. Luffy had already thrown himself back into the fight, and Nojiko and Genzo sat a few feet away, faced in the direction of Arlong Park. Hazel was just about to join them, when she was once again pulled under.

Her eyes widened in fear as she was dragged to the bottom, her head slamming against the hard surface. _Shit!_ Squiddum's eyes were crazed, glaring down at her with righteous fury as he wrapped his tentacles around her throat. Hazel scrabbled at them, desperately trying to rip them away to no avail. He was doing it slowly, painfully; this would not be a pleasant way to die. _No! Not yet!_ Her hands flung out beside her, searching. _This can't end yet! _Her palm scraped a sharp object. She grabbed it. _I'm not dying here, dammit! _She swung her fist with all the force she could muster, digging the sharpened piece of concrete deep into the Fish-man's neck.

Warmth leaked from the wound, blood pooled in the water, and with renewed vigor Hazel removed the weapon, only to drive it into his body a second time. And a third. And over and over until her lungs screamed and she fought her way to the surface, gasping as she dragged herself out of the water. Her body felt like it would explode. Her head pounded. The sun hurt her eyes.

She rolled over and threw up.

Lifting herself onto shaky arms, she looked around. Nojiko and Genzo had moved under one of the archways in the fence, and hadn't noticed her yet. Sanji was with them. Luffy, Zoro, and Arlong were nowhere to be seen. The squid-man didn't come back up.

She threw up again.

Hazel sat herself up, leaning her head down between her legs in an effort to steady her breathing. Deep breaths in through her nose; deep breaths out through her mouth. Eventually her vision cleared, and her thoughts became less of a hazed frenzy. The sounds of the battle still raging suddenly became audible beyond her heart pounding in her ears. _It was either you or him. You're alive. That's a _good _thing._ _This fight isn't over yet._

But her fight was; she was done for now. The rest was up to Luffy.

Hazel stood up on shaky legs, wobbled slightly, and made her way over to Nojiko, Genzo, and Sanji. "Hazel-chan! Are you hurt, my darling?~" Sanji asked as she approached, not noticing the way she winced at his volume. She shook her head for now, not wanting to worry anyone, and looked around at the now silent Arlong Park.

"Where is everybody?"

"Luffy's fighting Arlong in there," Nojiko said, pointing towards the big yellow tower. Hazel nodded, accepting this.

"Ok, but...there was a swordsman here too just a second ago."

"Luffy switched places with him when his legs got free; he's somewhere over there," Sanji answered, apparently unbothered as he lit a cigarette. Hazel glanced in the direction he indicated, eyes growing wide in concern when she realized he was beyond the gate.

"Did he fucking throw him?! Argh, he better not be dead! He promised!" Despite their (and her body's) protests, Hazel took off towards the swordsman's location, ignoring the crowd's calls for her to wait. She spun around the gatepost, nearly screeching when she saw Zoro lying there, bloody and definitely not moving. "Oi! We had a deal you know! If you die, I'll kill you!"

"Good thing we're both not dead then, huh?"

A smile broke out over Hazel's face, her body light with giddy relief. She sat down, leaning against the fence, and patted Zoro's shoulder. "Not that it probably matters, since that doctor seems the type to kill us just for running around like we have been." He opened his eyes to glance at her, amusement lying beneath the surface. With a deep breath, the two turned their attention once more towards Arlong's tower, eagerly awaiting the outcome of this battle.

Time dragged by as they waited for any sign of how things were going. No one spoke, all waiting with bated breath for either fighter to appear. There seemed to be a collective gasp when an object came crashing through an upper floor window. "What's that?!" Hazel squinted, trying to focus on what the object was, and reared back in surprise when she realized.

"A desk?" she said allowed, puzzled. Zoro didn't offer any words of wisdom (actually, Hazel could swear he was snoring, of all things), but as Johnny and Yosaku argued loudly over _something_ that didn't matter, it dawned on her just what it might be. Squidly - she shuddered as she thought of him - had called Nami their cartographer. Which would mean that desk was-

More furniture came flying from the building, a bookshelf this time. Scrolls and papers fluttered down, destroyed by the water below. Chairs, tables, and all manner of odd instruments followed, one after the other. Hazel pulled herself up to glance over the wall, her eyes settling on Nami, who was staring almost blankly at the falling furniture. Almost.

As the writing desk crashed to the ground, Nami raised a hand to her face. She was crying.

Suddenly Luffy's foot came crashing through the roof, stretched longer than Hazel had ever seen. That stupid shark topper fell to the ground below, taking Arlong's damned jolly roger with it. And then the foot slammed back down, and the whole building came tumbling too.

"LUFFY!"

"What's going on? What's all the racket?" a deep voice grumbled from beside her.

"A-Arlong Park collapsed...Luffy's still in there…" Zoro perked his head up, wide awake, and pulled himself to his feet. He nudged Hazel's shoulder, indicating towards the others, and the two began the trek over. They heard the cheer long before they saw Luffy, and though Hazel knew deep down he couldn't be crushed by that building, her relief was still strong. She'd run over there and hug him if she thought she could do so without keeling over.

"NAMI!" Luffy shouted, causing everyone to pause, wondering what he would say. "You're one of us now!" Nami must've agreed, for the cheers rang out once again, and Hazel couldn't fight the grin spreading across her face. They won.

"Arlong Park has fallen!" the villagers cried, a deafening roar that nearly brought tears to her eyes.

Hazel and Zoro were almost there when a snivelly voice interrupted the celebration. "Hold everything!" it snickered. It was that rat-Marine from earlier. Hazel could feel her patience wearing thin; if one more person tried to give them trouble today, she might just lose it. "It's my lucky day! I saw the whole thing. Well done. It could've been a fluke, but somehow you two-bit pirates defeated the Fish-men.

"Now thanks to you, the gold I was supposed to give to Arlong, and all the treasure in Arlong Park, are mine! Throw down your weapons! Your valiant deeds will go on the record of Captain Nezumi of Marine Unit 16! Ack-!" Zoro yanked the Marine's collar backwards, effectively choking him off. Hazel stood next to him, glaring and tapping her foot in what she hoped was a menacing way.

"Don't ruin people's fun when they're finally happy," the swordsman growled.

A few good thwacks later, and Captain Rat-face was lying in a bloody pile along with his crew. "Thank you," Hazel said to the others, giving her stiff limbs a good crack. "I've been wanting to hit that guy for a while."

"You'd better not mess with me," the Marine captain choked out. "I'll make you regret it."

"He still doesn't get it," Sanji muttered, rubbing his head. Hazel shrugged.

"There's no fixing stupid." Nami walked up behind the group, replacing Luffy's hat on his head, and walking over to the rat-faced man.

"This is for shooting Nojiko...and wrecking Bellemère-san's tangerine grove." The man had barely made a sound before the girl whacked him across the face with her bo staff. His face made a satisfying crunch as he flew backwards into the water, and Hazel couldn't help but be smug over the situation. Talk shit, get hit.

"Thank you, Nami! I feel better now," Nojiko told her sister, smiling fondly while Genzo told her to hit him another thousand times. Hazel seconded that; his face was still intact. Nezumi rose out of the water with a gasp, and Nami stomped over.

"Now _you _guys are going to clean up these Fish-men, and help rebuild Gosa! And you don't get any of the treasure of Arlong Park! That money belongs to the people of this island," Nami scolded, pulling on his whisker-stache. "And one more thing...give me back my money!"

"Okay, okay!" the man snivelled, tears in his eyes as he finally backed away from the woman and began to swim away. "I won't forget this, you rotten pirates! You, in the straw hat! You said your name was Luffy! So _you're_ the captain! Remember this, you've incurred my wrath! Now something terrible will happen to you! I'll pay you back in spades! You mark my words!"

"He says something terrible is going to happen…" Sanji said around his cigarette.

"How did he know about me becoming King of the Pirates?" Hazel giggled, placing an arm around her brother's bloody shoulders. If she leaned a little heavily on the boy, he didn't mention it.

"That's not it, you idiot," Zoro scowled at him. Usopp was the only one concerned.

"Hey, what'll we do if something terrible really does happen?!" Hazel shrugged.

"I'm sure plenty of terrible things will happen. We're pirates, remember?" She smiled brightly at the boy, but he didn't seem comforted in the slightest, and he slumped over himself in worry. Hazel just shook her head at him. He'd be all right.

"Come on, everyone!" Came a sudden shout from behind them. The Straw Hats turned to see the villagers pouring out of Arlong Park, flags waving and smiles on their faces. "We shouldn't be celebrating all by ourselves! Let's tell everyone on the island the good news! Arlong Park has been destroyed!"

Hazel was just about to suggest joining the celebration, when Zoro promptly fell over. Blood was seeping from his wounds, and panic descended upon the group. Someone called for the doctor, but she didn't register who; her attention was fixed solely on the man bleeding out on the concrete. She couldn't look away. Her head felt dizzy. Hazel vaguely registered her knees hitting the ground, the sound of her name. She heard no more as everything went black.

* * *

She woke up to Zoro's screaming.

Hazel's eyes snapped open, only to quickly shut again at the bright, white ceiling. She tried again, slower this time, as her brain began to register her surroundings. A comfy bed, a yelling swordsman, and a grumpy doctor. Hospital then. Her head hurt. She raised an arm to her aching skull, not at all surprised to find bandages wrapped around it yet again. Her throat felt sore too, and overall she felt like she'd been hit a thousand times with a big tree branch. Not a good feeling.

"You numbskull, trying to fix such a serious injury yourself!" she heard the doctor scold Zoro as he stitched his wound from Mihawk. "Is there a doctor on your ship?"

"A doctor?" Oh good, Luffy was here too. "That would be nice. But a musician should come first, right?"

"Why a musician?" the swordsman ground out through his teeth, hissing as the doctor made another stitch.

"Well, pirates sing, don't they?"

"They don't sing much if they're dead, Luff…" Hazel groaned out, her voice scratchy, and smiled as the boy was forced back in his chair before he could leap on her. Luffy was pouting slightly, but didn't try to fight it as his sister sat up.

"And _you_! Running around with a concussion like that! You should've been resting, dammit! Now drink some of that water!"

Hazel blinked at the scolding, feeling a bit childish, and busied herself with drinking from the glass left at her bedside. As soon as the cool liquid hit her tongue, it was as though she couldn't stop, and she drank until the entire glass was empty. Her throat hurt as she drank, and when she reached for it, she was surprised to find bandages also wrapped around her neck. "Don't think I didn't notice those either, missy! That Fish-man really did a number on you!"

Hazel ignored the questioning look of her crewmates, instead settling back into the bed. She didn't want to think about Squidly, Shoku, whatever his name was. Wasn't that something? She'd killed him, and she didn't even know his name..._It was you or him._

Why didn't that make her feel better?

Eventually, the doctor shooed their captain out, ordering Hazel and Zoro to stay in bed and rest. Though both were loath to admit it, they were glad for the opportunity, even though neither of them found sleep easy to come by that night. Maybe it was the way Johnny and Yosaku snored from their beds, loud enough to wake a horde of zombies. Maybe it was just too much on their minds. In Hazel's case, she was spiralling down a train of thought she couldn't seem to pull herself out of. Maybe that would be her punishment.

"First time, huh?" The deep voice startled her out of her thoughts, and she finally turned to her companion. Zoro didn't say anything more, and for a second Hazel thought she'd imagined it. Then he turned and looked her right in the eye, a serious edge there she hadn't really seen before; at least, not directed towards her.

"Does it get any easier?" she asked after a beat, answering his question. The swordsman shrugged, lightly so as not to stretch his stitches.

"Not really. Each one will stay with you, doesn't matter how much you justify it to yourself. Truth is, you want it to stay that way." Hazel gave him a look that said he was crazy. "Trust me, the last thing you want is for killing to become easy to do. You'll lose yourself that way."

"That doesn't exactly make me feel better," Hazel pouted, staring at her hands.

"It wasn't meant to," Zoro told her bluntly. "It's just how it is. You can mope about it if you want, or you can pick yourself up and keep living. You're the only one who can make that choice." Hazel stared at him, speechless, then took a deep breath and settled back against the pillows, suddenly exhausted.

"I will…" she whispered into the silence. She saw Zoro nod in the corner of her eye.

"We'll be there to help you up when you need it…" Hazel felt herself smiling, just a bit, and she quickly wiped at her eyes. She shook out her limbs, as though shaking off the bad feelings, and took a deep breath. She _did_ feel better. Somehow. Just a little bit.

"Ugh," she groaned out, drawing Zoro's attention once more. "I wish I had my notebook with me."

"Didn't the doc say to rest?" he teased, knowing full well he wasn't resting either. Hazel scowled at him, but the swordsman only rolled his eyes. "Lucky for you, Nami brought it from the ship while you were asleep." Hazel whipped around, wincing at the way her head pounded. There, on the nightstand next to the glass of water she'd chugged earlier, was indeed her notebook. She blamed her headache as the reason she'd missed it, and eagerly ripped it open to a random page. If Zoro said anything else, she didn't hear it, too absorbed in the catharsis that came from writing something no one would ever see.

* * *

That night, for the first time in 8 years, the people of the Conomi Isles threw a party. Their raucous cheers sounded through the little hospital room through the entire night, and the next night, and finally by the third night Hazel, Zoro, Johnny, and Yosaku were allowed to join in the festivities. Rows upon rows of tables were set up in the streets, piled high with foods of all kinds. Music filled the air, booze flowed freely, and the people danced until their shoes wore through. And then they danced some more.

"Thanks for the clothes," Hazel told Nojiko, sitting next to the woman on the steps of a house near the hospital. The clothes she'd borrowed from Nami had been thoroughly ruined, both by the seawater and by her knife. Hazel now wore a well-worn powder blue button up, and a pair of jeans that were slightly loose, but were nonetheless comfortable. She desperately needed to go shopping.

Nojiko just nodded in acknowledgement, clinking her beer glass with Hazel's before taking a big swig. Hazel watched the festivities over the rim of her glass, her notebook clenched under her arm, committing it all to memory.

"Hey," the woman said suddenly. She didn't turn to look at Hazel, but there was a serious look in her eye as she stared out at the villagers. "Look after Nami for me, will ya? I know she can take care of herself, but she needs to know she's got someone in her corner."

Hazel looked at Nojiko in surprise, a smile slowly forming on her face as she turned back to the party. "You know I'm not replacing you, right?" Nojiko barked out a laugh.

"Oh, I'm not worried about that. Us big sisters gotta watch out for the little ones, right? You'd ask me the same thing if the roles were reversed." She took another large gulp from her beer, and Hazel thought on her words. As she gazed out at the partiers, her eyes landed on Luffy, running around with a rather impressive collection of meat both in his hands and in his mouth, frantically searching for what she assumed was even more food. Watching him, she found herself smiling, matching the expression Nojiko had on her own face.

"Yeah," she said, sipping her beer. "Yeah, I would be." The women clinked glasses again, then parted ways. Nojiko to find something to eat, Hazel to find her crewmates.

"Now I'm gonna find me a girl!" suddenly sounded from a nearby alley, and to no one's surprise Sanji came running out, hearts in his eyes. Snoring followed after the man, and she knew she'd found their swordsman. Johnny and Yosaku were dancing amongst the crowd, surprisingly light on their feet. Usopp was standing atop a large tower, bellowing into a megaphone about his fight with the Fish-men. She had to hand it to the kid; managing to take one of those bastards down was no easy feat. She knew that from experience.

Luffy ran out ahead of her again, mouth still full of food, and she quickly grabbed him by the back of his collar. "Don't run with food in your mouth," she scolded lightly, ignoring his pout. "You'll choke. Now, what are we looking for?"

"Raw ham and melon!"

"Ooo, that sounds good actually. Let's go look!" Luffy nodded excitedly, grabbing her hand (she only cringed a little at the hunk of meat still in his hand), and pulling her around the party in search of the elusive dish. The siblings didn't really have a specific direction in mind, so Hazel figured it shouldn't have surprised her when they ended up outside the village. Luffy didn't seem to notice, however, and she was just buzzed enough not to care. It was a party after all!

They ended up near a cliff, the sea vast and dark and beckoning just beyond the overlook. Standing at the cliff was a man, with a familiar pinwheel, near what seemed to be a grave.

The missing puzzle piece.

"Raw ham and melon!" Luffy yelled into the night, startling poor Genzo from his thoughts. Only now did the rubber-boy seem to realize his surroundings, and Hazel couldn't help the giggle that escaped her as he looked around and said: "Aw, there's no food here! Let's go back."

"Hold it, you two!" Genzo called out, surprising the younger sibling, who hadn't even realized the man was there.

"A grave? Did somebody die?" Luffy asked, and Hazel winced at his bluntness. Genzo seemed to just take it in stride.

"Yeah, somebody died...a long time ago."

"Well, in that case, please accept my congolences…?" Hazel facepalmed. "Accept my congoleses? My combolences?" He looked to Hazel for help.

"Think it through, Luff."

"Comboninces?"

"It's 'condolences'," Genzo finally interrupted.

"Yeah, those." Hazel just shook her head.

"Listen, kid. Nami's going to sail off with you pirates. It will be a dangerous voyage. But if you guys do anything to make her unhappy, I'll kill you!" Hazel found herself smiling, despite Luffy's protests that they wouldn't do anything of the sort. Nami was truly lucky to be so loved. "Do you understand?!"

The siblings nodded. "We understand."

* * *

The next morning found the pirates finally back on the Going Merry, loading up supplies from the villagers of Cocoyashi for their voyage. Hazel had tried to reason with Genzo, who seemed to be the de facto village leader, telling him the village needed those more than they did. She'd figured the tangerine trees Nojiko had helped transplant onto the ship would be more than enough, but the villagers insisted on further repaying them for their help. Not wanting to be rude by rejecting them, Hazel finally gave up and boarded the Merry.

"We're going back to being bounty hunters," Yosaku called up from the shore. "Thanks for everything, Luffy."

"We'll say goodbye here," Johnny continued. "Hope we meet again someday."

"Ok, you guys take care," Luffy answered them, while Hazel gave a two-fingered salute and a cheeky grin.

"You too."

They were ready to set sail, except for one tiny problem: Nami still hadn't shown up.

"Hmm...she's not here yet," Usopp hummed, looking out over the cliffs.

"Maybe she's not coming."

"What?! Nami-san's not coming?!" Sanji yelled, squaring up to Luffy, who was clearly more bothered that he hadn't found the raw ham and melon the night before. "Listen, if Nami-san's not coming then 49% of my reason for being here is gone!"

"49%?" Hazel chimed in. Just as she was figuring out the math, a figure appeared in the distance, shouting out loud enough for the pirates to hear.

"Set sail now!" Nami began running down the road, parting the crowd easily despite their protests for her to wait.

"She started running," Usopp mused. "What's she up to?"

"She said to set sail, so let's do it," Luffy ordered, and the crew got to work, lowering the sails to catch the wind.

"Raise the sail!" The main sail opened wide, their jolly roger beaming proudly in the sun, and the ship began to pull away. The villagers of Cocoyashi continued to yell, begging Nami to wait so they could give a proper goodbye. Their cries went unheeded.

"Get moving!"

"Are you sure we should let her do this?" Sanji questioned, but Luffy didn't budge.

"She should leave the way she wants." Nami finally reached the shore, leaping the great distance to the Merry's back deck.

"NAMI! Why?!" the villagers yelled, shocked and dismayed at the abrupt departure. The Straw Hat navigator's feet touched the deck, back still turned to her home. She lifted her shirt, just enough to show her stomach, and Hazel raised a brow, considering covering the boys' eyes.

Then the wallets fell to the floor.

"Hey! My wallet's gone!"

"Mine too!"

Nami turned to look behind her, brandishing a beli slip between her fingers. "Take care, everybody!~"

"SHE TRICKED US!"

"She hasn't changed one bit," Usopp muttered, glaring at the girl.

"She could double-cross us again," Zoro growled, to which Hazel just rolled her eyes.

"Way to go, Nami-swan!~"

"Hehe, that's my girl," Hazel told her, wrapping an arm around the younger girl's shoulders while Luffy laughed behind them. The villagers continued to shout after them, berating Nami for stealing from them. The girl just chuckled as the shouts turned to gratitude.

"Hey kid! Don't forget your promise!" rose above the rest of the noise, and the Straw Hat captain sent the formerly pinwheeled man a thumbs up.

"Bye everyone! I'll be back!" Nami yelled, smile bright across her face as she waved. The island grew smaller and smaller, and when its people were no more than specks, the pirates turned back to the horizon.

"Next stop, the Grand Line!"


End file.
